


Yes, Professor?

by strawberrylovely



Category: Shance - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Student/Teacher, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Light Angst, Light Smut, M/M, Masturbation, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Professor Lance AU, Smut, Teacher-Student Relationship, all characters 18+, shance, star crossed lovers, wet dreams
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-01-18 13:13:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 25,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12388779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberrylovely/pseuds/strawberrylovely
Summary: Professor Lance AULance is a first year Spanish teacher at the university that Shiro - a former military soldier who lost his arm in battle and wants to go back to college and get a degree - is attending. Madness ensues when they both realize they have feelings for someone they're technically not allowed to have. Yet.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Skylocked](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skylocked/gifts).



> skylocked on tumblr drew wonderful fanart of this au that i'm pretty much basing their looks off of, but lance also has glasses lol  
> you can find it here: 
> 
> http://skylocked.tumblr.com/post/164757969625/heres-the-full-size-open-in-new-tab-because
> 
> (i may or may not have it hanging on my wall in my room (i do))

Shiro adjusted his books again, anxiously awaiting class to start. After the military and losing his arm, this was the first time he'd set foot in a classroom in... many years. He felt a bit self conscious, as the rest of his classmates looked about 5-10 years his junior, making him the oldest in the class. But he was prepared and excited, sitting on the front row. And as a morning person, this Monday/Wednesday/Friday, 9:00 AM, hour and a half Spanish class was just what he needed.

He remembered taking Spanish in high school, he even excelled at it. At one point, he could carry on a basic written conversation, but when it came to speaking it, he was lost. So, he was excited to be continuing his education in a subject he was at least somewhat knowledgeable in, even if it had been ten years since he graduated.

Shiro looked at the clock, wondering if it was fast since the time read 9:03 and the teacher still hadn't arrived. He pulled out his phone to double check, when the door burst open and a tall, dark, skinny male with glasses carrying a leather briefcase, coffee, and his suit jacket walked in and dropped his stuff (minus the coffee) on the desk in the front of the small classroom.

"Hey class, sorry I'm late. What a way to start the first day, huh?"

 _Wait, that beautiful man is the teacher?_ Shiro thought to himself.

His own thoughts startled him. He wasn't supposed to have the hots for his teacher. Especially not the first teacher of his first class of his first year of college.

"Anyway, _¡hola! Me llamo_ Professor McClain. Although, I also go by Professor M, _Profesor_ , or Lance if you're special."

Professor McClain laughed at his own joke, and when he realized he was the only one, he cleared his throat.

"I was joking. Don't call me Lance unless you want to be in trouble."

_Oh, I think I'm already in trouble._

Shiro's face felt hot, that terrible joke sending his heart soaring out of the classroom window. He really _was_ in trouble. Professor Lance was the literal definition of "tall, dark, and handsome." His skin was gorgeous, a color Shiro had already memorized and wished he could touch. Brown hair that was perfectly cut and shaped with gel framed his face and Shiro _really_ wanted to mess it up. And the way he talked and moved flowed like water and, well, Shiro was very thirsty.

"-ginner Spanish 1."

Oh, he was still taking. Whoops.

"I'll pass around the syllabus and you can look at it on your own time. We've got a lot of information to cover and I want to get started right away. But don't worry, I'm not so mean that I'll give homework on the first day," Professor McClain said.

And then he winked.

Right at Shiro.

That was a coincidence. Had to be. Right?

Except his eyes lingered on Shiro for another moment before he walked back to his desk. Shiro quickly looked down, trying to hide his blush.

"Now, first things first. Let's take roll."

_Come on, Shiro. You're not supposed to be attracted to your teacher. No matter how hot he is or if he accidentally-maybe-purposefully winks at you. You're supposed to be normal. You're supposed to be cool. Be cool-!_

"Takashi?"

 

\--

 

"Damn it!" Lance said, checking his watch. He was already two minutes late to his first class and he wasn't even in the building yet.

It was his first year of teaching Spanish at a university and he had to teach a 9 AM class. He hated 9 AMs in college, why did he think he'd be any good at teaching them? As he finally rushed into the building and into his designated classroom, he was already regretting his life choices. He shouldn't have gone to get coffee beforehand, but he knew he wouldn't be able to make it through the first day without it. Better late then never though, right?

"Hey class, sorry I'm late. What a way to start the first day, huh?" he said, as he dropped all his stuff onto his desk, making sure not to spill his coffee all over himself. What an even bigger disaster that would have been.

He straightened out his back and placed his coffee on the desk before moving to the center by the chalkboard.

"Anyway, _¡hola! Me llamo_ Professor McClain. Although, I also go by Professor M, _Profesor_ , or Lance if you're special."

He waited a moment before laughing, making sure his students knew he was joking about having a "special" student. He realized he was the only one laughing and cleared his throat, making sure not to look too embarrassed.

"I was joking," he explained, only digging his embarrassment further. "Don't call me Lance unless you want to be in trouble."

 _Oh yeah, Lance. Because that sounds_ sooo _much better._

"Welcome to Beginner Spanish 1!" he said quickly, changing the subject.

As he gave a spiel about the syllabus, he took a quick look around at all his students. There was a group of jocks in the back, ones that could probably snap him in half if they tried (though he knew they wouldn't, since he held their final grades in the class). He moved on from the jocks and spotted a group of girls giving him heart-eyes. Oh, great. Just what he needed, a bunch of fresh-out-of-high-school teens fawning over him all semester. Moving on. And in the front row-

_Oh... Oh damn. Alright._

The most gorgeous man he'd ever seen was sitting in the front row. He had light skin, small freckles littering his forearms- well, fore _arm_ , Lance noted. The man had a prosthetic in place of his right arm and it made him look even more attractive, if Lance was being honest, because it meant he was a badass. Dog tags hung around his neck, meaning he was former military and was probably very strong. He had shaggy black hair, but a very prominent white streak in the front, from stress or since birth, Lance couldn't tell. And on the man's face, a scar that went across his nose and extended to both cheeks. Overall, his build could rival Chris Evans'. Basically, he was exactly Lance's type.

Lance tried not to blush, but the man seemed to be staring him down and he wasn't sure how to take it. He liked it though. Kind of wanted the man to look at him like that all the time...

 _WHAT THE FUCK, LANCE. Do_ not _think about one of your students that way. Especially not on your very first day of teaching! What the hell!_

"...I'm not so mean that I'll give homework on the first day," he finished. And then he winked for good measure.

Right at the man he'd just been ogling.

_DAMMIT._

He turned around, hoping no one caught onto his internal plight, and decided that was a good time to take attendance.

"Now, first things first. Let's take roll."

He went down the list, trying to pay attention to whose face went with whose name, but his mind was too focused on trying to figure out what the man on the front row's name was.

"Takashi?"

"Uh, here," the man said. "But I actually go by Shiro. Takashi makes me feel like I’m in trouble.”

_Oh no, he's really cute._

“Okay, Shiro it is. I’ll make sure to only call you Takashi when you’re in trouble," Lance said, and then immediately regretted it.

_No. Nope. That was way too flirty. Way to go, La-_

"Like if I call you 'Lance'?"

Lance's brain stopped momentarily. Was...Was he _flirting back_? Oh, that's just not fair. 

"Y-Yes," Lance said, accidentally stuttering and hating that he probably just gave himself away, but damn if that Shiro guy wasn't making him feel all sorts of things.

“I’ll try to stay out of trouble then, professor,” Shiro said.

And then, as if the situation couldn't have gotten any worse, Shiro winked.

Lance breathed a laugh, trying to act like he wasn't dying on the inside, and continued taking attendance.

The rest of the class period, Lance tried not to make eye contact with a certain student who was definitely trying to attract his attention by asking questions and making a face that Lance definitely didn't find adorable while he took notes. After class, Lance watched Shiro walk around the long table of empty chairs, just so he could walk by his desk to smile and thank him on the way out, and Lance realized that he had a long semester ahead of him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chaptah twoo (already? I KNOW)
> 
> also, i'm envisioning Lance as 26ish and Shiro as 28ish, so there's not much of an age gap, but i still wanted Shiro to be older.
> 
> also, as you all know, this is student!shiro who is trying to get into prof!lance's pants. which means their personalities might be a little swapped in that shiro keeps flirting with him, but lance is just trying to keep his job. if ya don't like it, sorry boutcha, but this is my au <3
> 
> anyway, i hope y'all enjoy this chapter. it's a little scattered, but it helps to set up some further plot later on. have fun and study hard! ;)
> 
> (also!! all my thanks to aastronico on tumblr, a great artist and friend who helped me with the spanish!)

"Alright _clase_ , tell me some words you already know in Spanish," Lance asked on the second day. "Yes, Lindsay?"

" _Caliente,_ " the girl said, wiggling her eyebrows.

" _Muy bien,_ " Lance said, ignoring her misuse of intent. "Chad?"

"Uh, nachos?" Chad said, a few of his buddies nodding and encouraging him.

Lance had to physically stop himself from rolling his eyes, and, putting on his friendliest smile, replied " _Sí_ , that's an easy one, right? Haha. Anyone else?"

Shiro raised his hand, an innocent smile on his face. Lance knew better than to call on him, but he didn't want to make it obvious he _wasn't_ choosing him either.

"Shiro?"

" _Amor._ "

Aaaand there it was.

" _Muy bien,_ " Lance said once his breath came back to him.

 

\--

 

The next day of class, Shiro seemed to be on his best behavior. Almost the whole period had passed and still no remark, no awkward question, or lingering glance from the man. Lance wondered if the man's affections had moved to someone new. He was both relieved and disappointed at that idea.

Towards the end of class, Lance passed around a sheet for his students to write down their phone numbers so he could make a master list for when they did group projects. Shiro was the last one to sign, and he brought up the sheet to Lance and sat back down, without even the hint of interest. Maybe he really _had_ moved on. As Lance glanced over the names, he made note of who he thought would work well together, until he got to the bottom of the list.

_Takashi Shirogane: XXX-XXX-XXXX Call me ;)_

Lance looked up at Shiro with an eyebrow raised and, to no surprise, Shiro was sitting there, smirking back at Lance. Lance rolled his eyes and set his jaw, trying hard not to smile at the frankly cheesy gesture. He let the class go early that day, and Shiro flashed him a smile before he left.

Lance made sure to put Shiro in a group with Chad just for that.

 

\--

 

After a few more weeks of torture, Lance finally learned how to control his emotions in front of a class of students barely younger than him, and a certain older student that was particularly keen on getting him to blush. Or, at least, he _thought_ he could control them. That was, until midterms were coming up, and Shiro suddenly found a new way to ruin Lance's life.

 

"I'm a little nervous for our midterm, sir," Shiro said one day after class. He was standing by Lance's desk, and his face showed no hints of sarcasm or mischief. He was just another student in need of some help.

"You're doing fine in class, Mr. Shirogane. I'm sure you'll pass the midterm with flying colors."

"Well, the midterm is half spoken, and I'm not as skilled at the spoken stuff like I am with writing..."

"I see," Lance said, his Teacher Mode overriding any and all attraction. "I suggest you get a tutor then. Speaking the language takes practice, but you've still got weeks until the midterm, I know you can get it down by then."

"That's the issue, Professor. All the tutors either aren't doing Spanish, or their schedules are full."

"Oh."

"So, I was wondering if maybe... you could tutor me?"

"Oh, well uh-"

"Please, Professor McClain? I'll even pay you for private tutoring if I need to."

"No, no, don't worry about that. ...Send me your available times and I'll check my schedule and see if we can't find a time to meet this week, okay?"

"Thank you, sir! You're awesome."

"You're welcome," Lance said, glad Shiro had turned to leave so he could hide his blush at the compliment. So much for controlling himself. "Send me your availability a-sap!"

"I will!"

Lance shook his head, smiling to himself as he thought about Shiro's pleading face. And then it dawned on him. He'd just agreed to private meetings with Shiro. Alone. Just the two of them.

Shit.

 

\--

 

Lance and Shiro decided on meeting twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday evenings in the library every week until the midterm. The library had study rooms that were designated for people that needed a more private place to study. Lance made sure he picked one with a big window so that neither of them would be tempted to do anything - or, well. So that _he_ wouldn't be tempted to do anything. He wasn't sure if Shiro was daring enough to try anything.

 _This was a bad idea,_ Lance thought to himself as he waited for Shiro to meet him for their first session.

Not long after, Shiro walked through the door of the study room, books in his arms, looking like he'd just ran there.

"Sorry I'm late. My last class let out late and then I had to run over to my apartment to get my Spanish book, and... Anyway. I'm here now."

"You're fine. Take a seat and we'll begin. Or, do you need a moment to catch your breath?"

"I'm good," Shiro said, sitting down next to Lance.

They got started on the lesson, going over what would be on both the written and spoken tests. Lance quickly learned that Shiro wasn't lying when he said he struggled with the spoken part. He was having trouble rolling his Rs and forming a few of the vowels correctly.

"Okay, just form how you pronounce the letter 'R' in your mouth."

Shiro did as he was told.

"Good! Now place the back of your tongue to the top of your mouth and relax the muscle. Then blow warm air out through the back of your throat."

"Hhhhhhh," Shiro said, his tongue not vibrating like it was supposed to.

"You're not relaxing your tongue enough. Hew, hang ih ow uh yow mouf like thith," Lance let his tongue hang out of his mouth as an example and Shiro followed his lead.

"Like thith?"

"Yeth."

They let their tongues hang out in silence for a second before bursting into laugher. Lance realized that he loved the sound of Shiro's laugh and quickly got serious again before he could think more about it. Shiro followed suit and they both got back to work. Lance felt proud and a little guilty that he'd originally been surprised that Shiro was taking this seriously instead of flirting his way through it. He hadn't tried to flirt with him once the whole time.

"Okay, okay. Try again. You see how loose your tongue felt when it hung out? That's how relaxed it should be when you trill your tongue."

"Hhhh," Shiro tried again. "Hhhhhhh- I can't."

"Yes, you can. I know it. I've taught many people how to trill their Rs, and I'll teach you, too. We'll move on today, though. But keep practicing that at home when you are alone. Remember to relax your tongue, okay?"

"Got it."

"Now, let's move on to some basic phrases that might be on the spoken exam..."

 

\--

 

"Everyone, please pass your homework down to your left so I can collect it," Lance said, a few days before the midterm.

The students did as they were asked and Lance walked up the rows to grab each stack.

"Any questions on the homework assignment?"

"I have one," a familiar voice asked from the front row.

"Yes, Shiro?"

"Well, you've taught us the conjugations of the word _ir_ , which means 'go'. So I was just wondering if you could use it in a sentence. For example," Shiro said, smirk already appearing on his face before he'd even said the offending statement, "how do you say 'will you go on a date with me?'"

The room was silent save for a few scattered giggles. Lance knew his class was used to Shiro flirting, he'd even heard some of the girls saying they "shipped" them, whatever that meant. However, this was the first time Shiro had been so forward in class, and it caught Lance off guard. Especially considering how professional he'd been during their tutoring sessions (well, besides a few compliments to his appearance every now and then). Maybe he just liked to show off for the class. Lance could handle that.

"Well, the literal translation is _¿irías a una cita conmigo?_ , but we typically say _¿tendrías una cita conmigo?_ instead, which is closer to 'would you have a date with me?' Though personally, I would just say, _no_."

A silence fell over the room as Lance's words settled on his students' ears.

"Oh shit, bruh. You just got. Shut. DOWN!" Chad said, breaking the silence, and the class erupted in _OOHH!_ s directed at Shiro.

Shiro's face turned bright red and Lance felt bad that he'd embarrassed him, but the man was smiling and he put his hands up in a shrug.

"I tried!" he said, and the class laughed with him.

 

After class, Shiro was one of the last ones to leave, so Lance called him to his desk.

"Hey, I just wanted to apologize for embarrassing you earlier," he said once everyone had left the room.

"Oh, no don't worry about it. I'm the one that should be sorry. It was probably inappropriate for me to try that in the first place."

"I mean, yes, a little. But it's fine. You're hardly the only one in this classroom trying to flirt with me," Lance sighed, remembering the group of girls that always took more note of him than actual notes.

"But I'm the only one that you flirt back with."

"Excuse me?"

"Come on, Professor..."

"If I have given you any reason to believe that our relationship is anything other than professional-"

"No, no! You're very professional. I just- I-It's obvious that you like me. At least a little."

"I-I... I don't think it's appropriate for us to be having this conversation."

"You still haven't said whether you do or not."

"I cannot- I don't- I have-" Lance took a deep breath, pulling himself together. "I will not give you the satisfaction of an answer."

"That means 'yes'."

"Mr. Shirogane-" Lance scolded.

"I thought you were going to call me Takashi when I'm in trouble, Professor."

Lance could feel his cheeks heating up as the conversation went on. His own face, betraying him in his fight against poor judgement.

"Fine, _Takashi_..." Lance began, and Shiro's face flashed a surprised look before a mischievous grin took it's place. "I'll say this. Student-teacher relationships are frowned upon at this institution. Being a young teacher, I was given a very _thorough_ briefing about it before I was hired so that I understood that. Yes, we're all adults, but that does not mean that I am willing to risk my reputation, nor my very first teaching job over one of my students. No matter how interested I am in him."

Lance hadn't realized how close he'd gotten to Shiro during his monologue, but he could feel Shiro's breath, as well as his own bouncing back to him, hitting his face. If this were any other situation, Lance would have already kissed Shiro by now, and he wondered how Shiro hadn't already kissed _him_. It was probably because of the lecture he'd just given.

Good. They both needed to hear it.

Lance stepped back quickly, before something _did_ decide to happen. He gathered his things in his arms, making sure he didn't leave anything in the classroom.

"If you'll excuse me," he said, trying to walk past Shiro.

"Go on a date with me," the man said, stopping him.

"Wh- Shiro, did you not hear a thing I just said?"

"No, no, I understand what you said, I really do. But... there's a deeper connection here, I can feel it. And I know you can, too. I've never been a quitter, and now you've admitted to being interested in me. I can't just let you go that easily," Shiro said, touching Lance's arm. "All I'm asking for is one date."

"Look," Lance sighed, taking a step back so that Shiro's hand fell from his arm. "I'm flattered, and yes, I am... interested in you. But I can't. We can't. Not now anyway. I mean, maybe when you're not my student anymore? But no, not now and definitely not until then."

"So, you're saying I can just wait until I'm not in your class anymore?"

"I- I guess that's...what I said."

"Then I'll wait," Shiro smiled, backing away. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Shiro left the room, leaving Lance alone to his thoughts. When he finally made it to his office, he sat at his desk with his head in his hands.

He was falling for a student. An older student, but a student nonetheless.

"I am so fired."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance continues to have #struggles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all, without giving anything away, there's some slight nsfw in this chapter, just a heads up
> 
> also hunk is here!! and guess who he's married to ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 
> 
> (spanish translations at the end)

"I've been working on my Rs and I  
think I can finally do it."

"Really? Let's hear it."

"Hhhrrrrrrrr," Shiro said, beaming when the trill came out of his mouth. "See?"

" _Muy bien_ , Shiro. I'm proud of you."

"Thank you, professor," Shiro smiled.

Lance could have sworn he saw the faintest flush of color appear on Shiro's cheeks, and it made him feel smug that he wasn't the only one that could get flustered between them. He also noticed that Shiro was sitting closer than usual for their session that day. He tried not to mind, but every once in a while, Shiro's knee would brush against his and a new wave of heat rushed through him each time.

"How are your sentences coming along?" Lance said, tearing himself from his musings.

" _¿Ha llovido aquí en verano?_ " he asked slowly so he could remember the words.

" _Sí, mucho._ "

"Okay. And, uh... _Mi hermana... de diez años toca el violín... d-desde hace dos años._ "

"Oh, has she?"

"I don't actually have a sister, but it was one of the vocab words."

"Don't worry, they don't have to be true statements, just have to be coherent. And your last one?"

" _Mi_ professor _tiene unos ojos muy bonitos_ ," Shiro said, smiling shyly.

Lance blushed at the compliment, regretting it immediately. He knew it was better to blush privately with Shiro than in a classroom full of fresh-out-of-high-school teenagers, but he still didn't want the other man to know how much he affected him.

" _Gracias_ ," Lance said. "But I don't remember any of those words being on the vocab list."

"You said not all of the words in a sentence had to be."

"Yes, but at least one should be. You can use that sentence, but change a couple words for the exam so you can get your best grade. Besides, you mispronounced _prrrofesorrr_ ," Lance said, rolling the Rs an unnecessary amount. 

"It's difficult, there's two Rs and I don't know if my mouth can switch that quickly."

"I'll help you. start with just the first syllable. _Pro_."

" _Pro_ ," Shiro repeated.

" _Fes_."

" _Fes_."

" _Or_."

"Or."

"No, no. _Orrr_. Roll the R."

"Orhhrrhrrhrhr," Shiro tried, his trill coming and going. "Agh, I had it earlier."

"It's close," Lance laughed. "Remember to shape your mouth more like an R."

"Orrhhhrrrr...?"

"Here," Lance said, putting a hand on Shiro's face, squeezing his cheeks together to help his mouth shape. "Now try. _Profesor._ "

"... _Profesor_ ," Shiro said with his cheeks squeezed, getting both trills down perfectly.

"Yes! Good job," Lance smiled.

Shiro smiled back as best as he could with squished cheeks and raised an eyebrow. Only then did Lance finally realize what he was doing. He made a sharp inhale and loosened his grip. But before he could move his hand, Shiro grabbed it, keeping it in place as he leaned close.

"What are you-"

" _Me gustas tantísimo, profesor_ ," Shiro said in a low voice.

_Oh...fuck._

"A-And just where did you learn that?" Lance asked, his breath hitching in his throat.

"I have a great teacher," Shiro said, pushing closer.

"I- I..." Lance tried. His voice was stuck, however. Shiro's beautiful and kind face was mere inches from his and it would be so easy to just lean in and...

_No! No, no, no, no, no._

Lance gently tugged his hand free, Shiro thankfully letting go of him, and looked down to the floor between them. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath, and moved away.

"Uh," he cleared his throat, "we should get back to studying."

"Can't you just tell me the answers that will be on the test since I'm your favorite?"

"Who says _you're_ the favorite? Chad is growing on me more and more each day."

Shiro laughed loudly at Lance's remark, and Lance was grateful the man had already moved past the previous moment so he could too. He gave a small chuckle in return and they swiftly went back to prepping Shiro for the exam.

 

\--

 

"I just don't know what to do, Hunk," Lance said to his fellow teacher friend the next day in the faculty lounge.

Hunk Garrett, a French teacher who was only a few years older than Lance, had become his best friend within a month of teaching together. They gossiped in the lounge between classes and they'd even hung out outside of the school a few times. Hunk was easy to talk to and Lance felt like he could tell him anything without fear of being judged or hated. Which is exactly why Lance had told him about Shiro.

"I feel bad that I like him, but also I _really_ like him. And it's not like he's some young teenage freshman, he's older than me! But he's still a student, and- I just don't want to lose my first good teaching job because I'm too stupid to let my feelings get in the way," he sighed, taking a sip of his coffee. "Have you ever fallen for a student?"

"Yes, actually. I think it was my second year of teaching? There was this girl name Shay and she was so sweet and nice and absolutely gorgeous. I fell for her right away and battled with having these feelings most of the semester. Then I found out she was a lesbian and I didn't even stand a chance."

"Whoops."

"Yeah, whoops," Hunk laughed. "Not long after I met Allura and-"

"And you fell in love and got married and lived happily ever after, got it. But Allura's another professor, not a student."

"If it makes you feel better, I'm sure Allura's had feelings for a student before, too. It's easy when you're a young teacher."

"Ugh, that doesn't make me feel better," Lance groaned. "What should I do, Hunk? I can't just stay away from him." He thought for a moment before continuing. "I guess I could make sure we only ever see each other when we're in public? That way I can easily prevent anything before it happens."

"That's probably a good idea."

"I just wish I could get him out of my head," he sighed.

"Don't worry, I'm sure this is just an infatuation. You'll be over him in no time," Hunk said, putting a reaffirming hand on Lance's shoulder.

"I hope so."

 

\--

 

"Ah- Shiro!"

"Professor... Ugh, you're so good."

"Fuck, mm- yes, right there! Ah-n..."

"Come here and let me kiss you."

"Mmmph-"

Lance locked their lips together, need taking over his body as Shiro thrusted into him. Their mouths moved, tongues desperately working together to be closer and find out each other's secrets.

Suddenly, Lance was bending over his desk, Shiro having repositioned him as they both neared their climaxes.

"You've been so bad, Professor. I think you need to be punished."

Shiro pulled Lance's hair, making his back arch as his head was yanked upwards.

"Shir- Fuck! Shiro, I'm- I'm comi-!"

 

_BRR! BRR! BRR! BRR! BRR!_

 

Lance woke up to the worst morning wood he'd had in a long time. As he became more aware of his surroundings, he turned off his alarm, knowing there was no going back to sleep after that. The dream he'd been having ran through his mind and he rubbed the palms of his hands over his eyes in an attempt to get his mind off of it.

"What the fuck..."

There was no way he'd just been having a wet dream about Shiro. He couldn't have.

The tent in his pajama pants, however, told him otherwise.

_Really, Lance? Wet dreams? What are you, 16?_

He rolled over and checked his clock. 7:45. His first class didn't start till 9. He had time.

Lance slowly slid his hand down to his pants, dipped under the waistband, and started to relieve himself. He went slow, the ache making it hard to feel pleasure at first. But soon enough, he was nearing his limit and his hand sped up. Images flashed through his head of him being pressed against another warm body, kissing him, holding him down, pulling his hair-

"Shiro-!" He gasped, a load moan echoing through his small apartment. Realizing what he'd just said, he slapped his free hand over his mouth, hoping that would somehow erase the fact he'd just come calling out one of his student's names.

Once he had his bearings, he walked to the bathroom, washing his hands and then his face. He looked at himself in the mirror and saw bags developing under his eyes from stress and guilt made worse by him not being able to control his own desires. Shaking his head free of all thought, he took a shower, fixed his hair, put on his clothes, and left his apartment, hoping to leave his personal problems at home.

 

\--

 

Hope, of course, being the idyllic term. For as soon as he walked into his classroom and saw the student he couldn't get out of his head, all of his problems rushed back into the forefront of his mind.

Shiro was wearing something that would have seemed...weirdly out of character for him - at least to Lance's perception of him. It _would_ have, of course, if it hadn't been the most attractive he'd ever seen a human being look. The man in question was wearing an oversized pastel blue sweater with holes big enough that they showed the black, skin tight crop top he was wearing underneath. His black pants, riding low on his hips, were baggy and reminiscent of Aladdin, and if that wasn't bad enough, a thin black choker sat neatly around his neck. He looked like he'd just stepped out of a fashion magazine - beautiful in a way buff military-type men usually aren't. Lance had never seen anything more stunning.

Throughout the entire lesson, Lance kept catching himself staring and he hoped he wasn't being too obvious. Some of the girls had noticed Shiro's outfit too, it seemed, for when Lance _wasn't_ staring at Shiro, he saw most of the girls in class were doing it for him.

They flocked him once Lance let the class go, asking Shiro where he'd gotten his sweater and his choker, and Shiro played along, smiling and cheerily answering all of their questions, even awkwardly declining to go on a "shopping date" with one of the girls.

 

"Funny how wearing something you don't normally wear makes everyone treat you differently," Shiro said to Lance once everyone else had left.

"Why _are_ you wearing that, may I ask?" Lance said, pushing down his guilt from earlier that morning. "You never struck me as a crop top guy."

"I'm full of surprises."

"And the sweater?"

"It's chilly today."

Lance raised an eyebrow at him in response.

"What if I said I wore it to get a reaction out of you?"

"Did you, now?"

"Depends on if you wanted me to or not."

Lance huffed and rolled his eyes playfully as he packed his things up.

"Either way, looks like it worked."

Lance scoffed, throwing Shiro a scandalized look, pretending as if he hadn't been staring at Shiro the whole hour.

"I resent that remark," he joked.

Lance heard Shiro laugh quietly to himself and there was a small pause in the conversation as he closed his briefcase.

_You're flirting. Get outta there, Lance._

"Well, unless you need to talk about the lesson from today, I think I'm going to..."

"Actually," Shiro said, as Lance started to leave, "there's a party tonight. At the fraternity house. I have to help set up and I won't have time before to go back to my apartment and change. 90s themed," he gestured to his outfit.

"Ah, I see. That explains the crop top."

"Though, I'd definitely wear one more often if you asked."

"So, a frat party?" Lance asked, changing the subject.

"I know, not exactly my thing."

"Yeah, you don't seem like you'd be first in line for a kegster."

"Well, to be fair, you didn't think I'd be a crop top guy either, and yet..."

"You got me, there," Lance smiled. He made another move towards the door, but Shiro stepped in front of him before he could walk further.

"Uh, but, you're right. I'm kind of only going because I'm required to, so I was just wondering... if you wanted to go with me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Shiro. You know how I feel about dating students."

"It'd just be a friend thing, I promise. No strings attached."

"I still don't really think that'd be a good idea considering..." He made a vague gesture. "Besides, I'm not really a frat party kind of guy. Plus I'm a teacher, so it would probably be weird if I showed up."

"I mean, like I said, it's not really my thing either, but I just thought it'd be more fun if you were there," he said sheepishly, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck. "And, I've heard rumors that one of the philosophy teachers crashed one of the parties last year and did a keg stand, so I doubt it would be weird if you came."

"I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm still going to have to decline. Thank you, though," Lance said, though part of him wanted to go, if only to see Shiro. He knew it would only spell disaster if he did.

"Okay well, if you're bored later or just want to hang out with a _friend_ , you know where to find me."

"Alright, Shiro. Have fun tonight," Lance said, smiling at the older man and walking past him. "And turn the light off when you leave?"

"Will do."

Lance left, proud that he'd had enough self control to decline Shiro's offer. He'd enjoy his evening alone knowing that he did the right thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you to my friend nico for the spanish/translation once again!! (if and when there's spanish, you can most likely guarantee that it was all thanks to nico's help lol)
> 
> translations:
> 
> "Has it rained here in summer?"  
> "Yes, a lot."
> 
> "My ten-year-old sister has played violin for two years."
> 
> "My professor has really pretty eyes."
> 
> "I like you so much, professor."


	4. Chapter 4

Lance was not enjoying his evening alone. He was home, drinking a glass of wine, grading midterm exams, which he normally enjoyed. But not even that would lift his mood. He needed an energy booster, something to help him perk up and enjoy his quiet Friday night. He needed something exciting. Like...a party.

"No! You are _not_ going to that party," he reminded himself aloud.

Taking a sip of his wine, he sat up straight and shuffled the papers, hoping to gain the motivation he needed to finish. He picked up his red ink pen and tried to continue grading.

"Okay, who's next?" he said, looking at the name on the exam at the top of the stack.

 _Chad_ -

"Nope."

He sat the papers back on the table and pushed them away, unable to make himself look at a Spanish assignment by a student who could barely even speak his own language.

Rubbing his temples, Lance tried to think of something to cure his restlessness. No matter how hard he tried to keep his mind off of the party, his thoughts kept drifting to what Shiro had said.

_If you're bored or want to hang out with a friend..._

He was definitely bored. And a party is a public place, so he technically wouldn't be going against his own rule of not being alone with Shiro.

"Maybe I'll just stop by for a bit. Just to see what the fuss is about."

 

\--

 

Lance didn't even need to be at the party to hear the music. As he walked, he could hear it from nearly half a mile away. When he finally made it to the frat house, there were people on the lawn, some in varying degrees of undress, dancing, drinking, and even passed out in the grass.

"I don't know what I expected," Lance muttered to himself, stepping over a sleeping person.

Inside the house, the state of the partygoers was substantially worse than outside. It was crowded and hot, and even more people were half naked with drinks in their hands. The music was too loud to really hear anything without yelling which, many people were doing. Overall, it just felt like a blur, and Lance wasn't even drunk.

He pushed past a few people, in search of the main reason he even decided to show up (though, he'd deny it later): Shiro. Knowing him, he was probably in a corner somewhere. Unless he was much more of a party animal than he let off. But sure enough, in the back of the living room, shaggy hair and a light blue sweater turned white from the lighting, stood the man in a corner, holding a cup in his hand and giving off a look that said "please don't talk to me."

Walking past a couple making out on a couch, he made it to the back of the room right as he and Shiro made eye contact.

"You came!" Shiro yelled over the music.

"I did!"

"What?"

"I said, 'I did!'" Lance yelled, closer to Shiro's ear. "Uh, could we go somewhere quieter?"

"Yes, please. Upstairs?"

"I'll follow you."

Shiro made for the stairway, maneuvering past several drunken dancers. Lance followed close behind and when they got to the stairs, he felt himself take in a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"PROFESSOOORR!"

Lance whipped his head around, not sure whether to be worried he'd been seen, but relaxed when he saw who'd called him.

"WHOO!" Chad yelled, raising his plastic cup towards him and Shiro. "GET SOME, DUDE!"

"Oh, no, we're not-"

"Don't mind him," Shiro said in Lance's ear. "He's drunk."

People pushed past them in both directions, going to or coming from bedrooms that had probably seen more action than Lance had in his life.

"Maybe we shouldn't go upstairs. I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea."

"I doubt anyone here would remember."

"I know, but..." Lance hoped Shiro could see his worry. He looked up at him on the staircase and the man gave him an understanding smile.

"Want to go out on the lawn then?"

"Sure."

They walked outside, struggling to get by the mass of people gathered by the front door and found the one empty spot on the lawn that surprisingly hadn't been tainted by the party yet.

"I'm not sure why I came here," Lance said. "I'm still trying to convince myself that this wasn't a completely terrible idea."

"Well, you came because you wanted to see me, right?"

"More like, I was bored out of my mind and decided to take up an offer that I hoped would bring me more excitement than grading midterms."

"And?"

"Hmm?"

"Did this bring you more excitement?"

"You could say that," Lance smiled.

The lawn was much more tame and the music wasn't overbearing like inside the house. It was easier for the two of them to chat and make fun of drunken party goers out there.

"Oh, uh, did you want a drink?" Shiro asked.

"No, thank you. I'm sure any and everything here is spiked and I'm not looking to end up like them," he gestured to a sleeping person nearby. "Also, I don't really want to go back inside," he laughed.

Just then, a loud crashing sound came from inside and the music stopped.

"Uh, oh," Lance said, as they both glanced back to the house.

"I hope that means the party's over."

"Do you have to stay the whole time?"

"No, but I figured I should at least stay for a bit so I wouldn't be in trouble for skipping out, you know?"

"Well, you've been here. Who's to say you can't leave now?"

"I- You're right."

"So?"

"...Let's blow this popsicle stand," Shiro said.

Lance laughed, following Shiro as he threw his cup onto the lawn near countless other discarded drinks and started to walk off the property.

 

\--

 

"Your outfit is ridiculous," Lance said as they walked the short distance to his apartment.

"You love it."

"I...It's certainly something," he joked.

"I kinda like it. Makes me want to wear stuff like this more often."

"Really?"

"Hmm, maybe something a bit less revealing."

"Well, the baby blue is a gorgeous color on you," Lance teased in a funny voice.

"Oh, thank you so much!" Shiro responded in the same tone. "I got it at Goodwill for three dollars."

"High fashion."

"Only the best."

They both giggled and faced back to the street, trying to find their way in the dark.

The night air was cool, wind blowing leaves around in the dim light under the starlit sky. It was a perfect fall evening, one the two men were enjoying spending together as Shiro walked Lance home.

Lance suddenly shivered, unsure if it was from the weather or how nervous he felt walking besides the other man as he remembered they were alone.

"Are you cold?" Shiro asked, noticing Lance's slight tremble.

"A little."

"Do you want my sweater?"

"Thank you, but I doubt it would do much. I mean, can you even call that a sweater from how big the holes are?"

"It's mostly just for 'style' or something, but I'm definitely still warm."

"I think you're just a hot person."

"Ooh, thank you," Shiro lilted.

"Shut up!" Lance laughed. "I meant like you radiate heat. But yeah, sure. Enjoy the compliment."

"I will."

Shiro smiled at him sincerely.

"You gotta stop looking at me like that, dude," Lance said.

"Like what?"

"Like that! What you were just doing. The...smile."

"I can't smile at you?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because. I mean, you- I- You just can't."

"Uh, oh," Shiro smirked.

"What?"

"You've fallen for me. Admit it."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Uh huh, sure. Act all coy, then."

"I will, thanks."

They walked in silence again, the darkened sidewalk only lit by street lamps. It only took a few more seconds before Lance spoke up again.

"I have a question."

"Shoot."

"How come you're only flirty in class? You're not like that during our tutoring sessions. Well, most of the time. And like, there's been banter, but you haven't been forward this whole time like you are when I'm teaching."

"It's easier to flirt in class. When we're alone I get nervous, but when we're in class I can just pretend it's for show."

" _You_ get nervous? Around me?"

"Yes? I... really like you and I don't want to mess anything up."

"So, you're serious? You really do like me?"

"Have I not made that abundantly clear?" Shiro laughed.

"No, you definitely have. I just wasn't sure if it was you trying to be funny and get under my skin, or if you were just trying to get into a teacher's pants and I was an easy target, or..."

"Or if I genuinely liked you?"

"Yeah, that."

"Well, I do. I really, genuinely like you... _Prrrofesorrr_ ," Shiro said, both Rs rolling perfectly.

"Ah, you did it!"

"Thanks to you."

Lance hummed in response, smiling forward as he looked for his street. There was another silence, this time not awkward or needing to be filled with voices. As they neared Lance's apartment, the two men slowed their walking to prolong their inevitable departure.

"Well, this is me," Lance said when they finally stopped at the front gate.

He turned around to thank Shiro for walking him home, but was struck by how beautiful Shiro looked in the glow from the street lamps. If he didn't know better, he'd say Shiro was having a similar internal realization. The longer they stared, the louder his heartbeat got and he secretly wished he could read Shiro's thoughts to know what he was thinking.

All it took, however, was two seconds of wishing, and Shiro's thoughts were made known. Lance didn't even comprehend what was happening until Shiro was pulling away and he realized the man had just kissed him.

Wait.

What?

Shiro's eyes grew wide once they were looking at each other again and his face turned pale as he started to apologize.

"I am so sorry," he said.

There is no way that was their first kiss and Lance hadn't even been aware of it. No, he had to make this right.

"I shouldn't have done th-"

Lance pulled him back and kissed him again, cutting off his unnecessary apology. Nothing but his need to be closer was running through Lance's mind as he made sure they'd both remember the moment.

He wrapped his arms around Shiro's neck and the older man's hands went straight to his hips, holding tightly as he leaned into Lance's mouth. Lance felt his back arch slightly from the pressure and he opened his mouth, allowing Shiro to slide his tongue in and he moaned at the feeling. Shiro's hands moved from his waist to his lower back and the man released the kiss, moving to press kisses along Lance's jaw down to his neck.

At a particularly sloppy kiss to the neck, Lance suddenly remembered himself and his eyes shot wide open.

"Whoah, uh... Sh-Shiro. Shiro, stop," he whispered, voice breathy and making no move against the other man.

Shiro must not have heard Lance's uncommitted plea as he nipped at the wet spot on Lance's neck, making him moan again.

"Mmm... Wait, no. Shiro, stop it!" he tried again, this time pushing the man away from him. "Alright, okay, enough."

Shiro looked confused, but his puffy lips and slightly messed up hair showed how happy he was at what had just occurred.

"This was a mistake," Lance said, opening the gate. "We- I shouldn't have- I'm sorry."

"Wait-"

"Goodnight, Shiro."

Lance ran to the front door, not bothering to look back. Once he was inside he slammed the door, leaning against it as he slumped down to the floor, head in his hands.

Why. _Why_ did he do this to himself? Why was he incapable of controlling his own feelings?

Anger boiled inside Lance. Anger at himself, at Shiro, at the rules keeping them apart, and mostly at his feelings that kept drawing him towards the other man despite what he knew was wrong. He wanted to scream, curse, break something. Anything that would prevent the guilt from coming back. But it was already settled deep within him, and the only thing his body knew how to do was cry. So he did.

He sat in that same spot for what felt like hours, crying until the tears stopped. When they finally did, he pulled himself up on what little energy he had and went to his bedroom. He tore off his clothes and got into his bed, curling into a ball of self hatred, unable to sleep. His thoughts swirled around, reminding him of what all he could have done to prevent this from happening.

Self control had been his downfall. He should have way more self control than this. Yet one pretty boy and his brain goes out the window. Typical.

He shouldn't have gone to that party. He shouldn't have let Shiro stay after class everyday to talk to him. He shouldn't have accepted his offer to tutor him. He shouldn't have even given him as much as a glance on the first day, much less flirted with him. He should have stayed away.

And what would happen to his job should someone find out? He didn't even want to think about that.

No, his best option was to stay away from Shiro as much as possible. In class, he'd be just another student. No more "special relationship." No more flirting. No more talking in private. He could do this. He _would_ do this. For his job and for his sanity. He had to.

No more Takashi Shirogane.

Lance relaxed a bit as he came to a conclusion, subsiding his guilt for another day. Once he'd convinced himself he was officially done with Shiro, he allowed himself to fall into a restless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoops!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> finally, more of shiro's perspective, hello to keith, and yay! more angst

"You have the same Spanish teacher as me, right?" Shiro asked his friend Keith on Saturday evening.

Keith Kogane, a senior aeronautical engineering major and 6 years younger than Shiro, was seated a few feet away from him on the couch, playing a video game on the tv in Shiro's apartment.

"Professor McClain? Yeah. Hate that guy."

"What?"

"Yeah, he's like, super annoying and - oh, fuck, DIE, DIE, DIE," he yelled at the game. "Anyway, he treats me like I don't do anything."

"Do you?"

"I mean, not really, I just sit in the back on my phone, but still, it's annoying."

"You know you have to pass Spanish to graduate, right Keith?"

"I know! I make good grades. I just don't like the way he teaches. Or his voice. Plus, he always picks on me for no reason."

"Well, to be fair, he's been teaching all day and probably has to deal with a lot of people that aren't in there to learn. So by the time he gets to your class, he doesn't want to deal with someone who's on their phone the whole time."

"You're right. Still don't like him - aw, dammit! I died," Keith threw the controller on the couch and leaned back, looking over at Shiro. "Why are you asking about him?"

"Well, uh. I like him."

"Okay... Cool, I guess."

"No, Keith. Like, I _like_ him."

"Oh, shit, so he's like, a TILF?"

"What?"

"Teacher I'd Like to Fuck. Except you, not me."

"Uh, I guess? I mean, no. I mean... _Well_..."

"I can't believe you're literally hot for teacher. Like that one Van Halen song."

"Yeah, that's exactly it," Shiro laughed ironically. "Except uh, we... sorta... kissed."

"Wait, what? You made out with a teacher?"

"A little?"

"Dude, you'll both get into some deep shit if anyone finds out."

"I know! Which is why you can't tell anyone."

"I won't, I swear."

"It wasn't supposed to happen," Shiro continued, thinking back on the previous evening. "Something kinda came over me and I just... kissed him. And I expected him to be mad, but then he pulled me back in and, holy shit, dude. That was probably the best kiss of my entire life."

"Ugh, gross," Keith said, making a disgusted face. "I'm not being homophobic," he added when Shiro gave him a look. "I just don't wanna think of my least favorite teacher like that, you know?"

"Right. Sorry."

"It's fine, please continue. Preferably with less detail."

"Alright. So, we kissed..."

"Yes."

"And then he pushed me away and apologized and said it was a mistake and left without saying anything else. And, I mean, I get it. I do. But I'm just really confused and a little hurt, you know?"

"He obviously likes you too, but knows it's wrong to date students. He was probably freaking out a little."

"Yeah, but why did he keep kissing me if he knew he shouldn't?"

" _Desire_ or some shit."

"I guess that makes sense."

"Think of it this way. Why'd you kiss him in the first place if you know _you_ shouldn't?"

"Well that... that's... a good question."

"He's probably hurt and confused by you just as much as you are by him, dude," Keith reasoned, picking up the controller again. "Maybe even more."

"Yeah, you're right. I just hope he doesn't hate me, you know? It was an accident and neither of us should have kissed the other, but I'm definitely at fault for starting it."

"Yeah, it's totally your fault."

"Thanks, Keith," Shiro deadpanned.

"You're welcome!"

Keith went back to the video game, trying to defeat a boss and Shiro went back to thinking about what he should do. He felt like he should apologize to his professor, tell him to blame it all on him and that he'd make sure no one found out. If Professor McClain would even talk to him, that is. He thought about what to say and waited for Monday to come so he could set things straight.

 

\--

 

Lance could hear the whispers. He wasn't stupid. He knew there was something going on between his students. Lindsay and Darren apparently had a fling over the weekend and now, none of the two groups of students could keep quiet while he was trying to teach.

"Class," he said, perhaps too harshly. Lindsay's face snapped forward and she looked a bit embarrassed that she was being stared down by the teacher. "I understand that your minds are elsewhere, but please don't bring your personal matters into my classroom."

"You wouldn't know anything about that, would you, professor?" Shiro asked mischievously.

Lance was taken aback. He should have remembered, Shiro had an easier time being outspoken in class than one-on-one. But Lance was not in the mood for snippy comments, so he shut it down completely.

"Mr. Shirogane, please refrain from making any further commentary, else I get the dean to come in and take care of all of our attitudes today."

"Yo, don't mess with the prof today, fam. Not even _the favorite_ is safe," Chad whispered loudly.

"Mr. Stevens."

"Sah, dude?"

"Do you have something you'd like to share?"

"Nah, just making an observation."

"And what might that be?"

"You're like, on edge today, dude."

"Yeah," Lindsay chimed in. "You're usually so sweet, but today you're all salt and no sugar. Did you have a bad weekend, or something?"

Lance took a deep breath. Yes, he was on edge, and apparently his students could all tell something was wrong. He appreciated their concern, but it wasn't therapy hour and he didn't feel like talking about his own personal problems with his students.

"I apologize, class. You're right, I'm a bit off today." He tried to avoid looking at Shiro, but of course his eyes couldn't stay off him for long. When he looked over, the man was looking off to the side dejectedly. "How about this," he said, looking back at the rest of the class. "I don't feel like teaching, and obviously, most of you guys would rather be elsewhere right now. So, instead of finishing my lecture over the chapter, how about you all read it for homework and I'll let you guys go free?"

A few scattered _yeah_ s echoed around the room and Lance waved his hand towards the door.

"Get outta here," he smiled, and the room whooped in excitement.

To no one's surprise, the last one to leave was Shiro. Instead of standing at Lance's desk like normal, however, he was still seated at his table.

"You're free to leave," Lance said off-handedly, as if he didn't really notice Shiro, just another body still in the room.

"Why are you ignoring me?" Shiro asked, head facing towards the table.

"I'm not," Lance said, still not looking up.

"You definitely are."

"What do you want me to say, Shiro? I'm trying to distance myself."

"Why?"

"Wh-" Lance felt himself get upset at the question and cut his voice down to a whisper as he walked closer to his student. "'Why?' We... We kissed and that's not allowed. I'm trying to keep from doing it again. I can't be around you now that that's happened."

Shiro was quiet for a second and he finally raised his head to meet Lance's eyes. "So... you want to kiss me again?" he tried.

"That is not the point, Shiro," Lance frowned. "Look, we like each other. That's been established. But I'm a teacher, and this is my first job. If the administration finds out, I could get fired, you could get kicked out, and I might not ever be able to teach again if they tarnish my record."

"You know I won't tell anyone what happened."

"I know you won't. But there's still a risk of people finding out if we continue like we were. I can't take that risk."

"I understand," Shiro said, looking down again.

"Listen, Shiro. You're important to me."

"Hah," came the sarcastic reply.

"You are. However my job is important too, and I can't jeopardize it because of my feelings. I won't."

"Can I still see you?"

"You're still taking my class, aren't you?"

"I mean... You know what I mean."

"I... Maybe. I don't know. I'll still tutor you, if that's what you want, but it has to be professional. No more flirting."

"Got it."

There was a silence as Lance walked back to his desk. He gathered his things and turned to face Shiro once again.

"I can't help but feel like this is my fault," he said quietly.

"What?" Shiro's head shot up. "No. No, it's not your fault. How could it be? I'm the one that kissed you first."

Shiro stood and walked to the front of the room, maintaining a short distance between them for both their sakes.

"It's not-"

"You didn't make me fall for you, Shiro. That one's on me. That's my fault."

Lance walked to the door and turned back as it opened, face solemn.

"Turn the light out when you leave."

He left without another word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)
> 
> (fun fact: i was gonna have chad's last name be michaels until i remembered that chad michaels is a drag queen lol)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> new character introduction and a bit of what is happening to our main pair on the side

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyoooo this chapter is really short, but it's important to what is going on with the rest of the story. also, that means i'll probably upload another chapter soon so keep an eye out ;)

Lance was walking to his office after class when he heard his name.

"Professor McClain!"

He turned around, looking for the person whose voice had called for him.

"Oh, hello Dr. Smythe."

Dr. Coran Hieronymus Wimbleton Smythe, the dean over the Foreign Language department at the university was standing outside his office, as if waiting for Lance to walk by. He was a hyper, middle aged, mustached ginger with an accent who had hired Lance within a week of their first interview. Lance had a fond place in his heart for the older man - who reminded him of one of his uncles - and the ginger had taken a liking to him as well.

"Step into my office for a moment?"

"Sure thing, boss."

"Lance," Coran said once they'd both taken a seat, "I think we need to have a little chat."

_Oh shit. Oh fuck, he knows. He found out about me and Shiro and now he's going to fire me. You better get your story straight now, Lance, and pray that he'll go easy on you._

"Sir, before you yell at me, I just want to say-"

"Yell at you? I'm not going to yell at you."

"...You're not?"

"No! I'm worried about you, son. You haven't been your normal bubbly self recently and you've been late to work more often. Is there something going on? You know you can always come to me if you are having issues. And if it's a student or another faculty member giving you grief, let me know and I'll take care of it."

Lance felt his entire being relax as he realized his boss was still unaware of what was going on between him and one of his students.

"Uh, no, sir. Nothing like that," he smiled nervously. "I've just been under a lot of stress lately and it's been getting to me. I haven't let it affect my teaching, however. I would never do anything to hinder the learning of my students," he said, ignoring the slight pang of guilt he felt as he said it.

"I know you wouldn't. And that's why I hired you. I also know that as a first year teacher, it's probably hard to get used to the stressors of the first semester. But you're a good teacher and I know you have what it takes to adjust accordingly."

"Thank you, sir. Honestly, I'm in bit of a rough spot in my personal life as well, but I'm hoping I'll come out of it soon."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"No, sir, if that's alright."

"Of course it is," Coran said, offering a sympathetic smile. "I believe in you, Lance. Make sure you're taking care of yourself. Thanksgiving break is coming up soon, you know. Do something for yourself to relax and take your mind off things."

"Yeah, you're right. I will. Thank you for your advice."

"Of course, Lance. And remember, you can always come and talk to me any time you need help."

"Yes, sir. Thank you," Lance got up and walked to the door.

"Have a good rest of your day," Coran called after him as he left.

"You too!"

 

When Lance was finally outside of the building, he let out a large sigh of relief. His heart was still racing, trying to calm down after thinking he'd been found out. He thought back over Coran's words telling him to relax and to take time for himself. If his high anxiety and paranoia lately was anything to go by, he definitely needed some relaxation. And something that would get Shiro out of his head. Thanksgiving break was a perfect time to do that.

Speaking of Shiro, Lance hadn't spoken to him about anything other than Spanish in weeks. Their tutoring sessions were awkward at first, but they decided to move into less private area of the library, helping both Lance Shiro to avoid side conversation and to stay professional. Not that Lance didn't miss talking to Shiro, but it was for the best if he was going to get through the rest of the semester.

He was still worried about word getting out, but he was proud of himself. Already he could feel himself starting to get over Shiro. Maybe it would be okay after all. Maybe he didn't have to worry any-

"Hahaha!"

Lance's eyes went straight to the sound that he knew so well. Shiro was a few yards away, walking on the sidewalk in the opposite direction. The man was far enough away that he hadn't noticed Lance yet, but Lance was focused on the scene ahead. Shiro was talking to someone, a younger male student named Keith that was in his 4 o'clock Spanish class.

 _I didn't know they were friends,_ Lance thought.

Keith was smiling as he talked, most likely telling a story that was making Shiro laugh as they went to dinner. Lance wondered what it was that was so funny.

As the two men came closer, Shiro looked up and suddenly he was making eye contact with Lance. The smile on his face faded, turning into a more neutral expression as he and Keith walked past him and he eventually looked away.

A sense of jealousy mixed with sadness came over Lance once Shiro was out of sight. He wished he could make Shiro laugh like that. He wished he could talk to Shiro and walk with him to class. He wished he could share happy stories with him to make him smile.

He turned around, expecting to see the back of Shiro's head as the two men walked to the cafeteria. What he wasn't expecting was Shiro to be looking back at him as well, a searching glint in his eye.

They looked at each other as they walked and Lance allowed himself to give a small smile. It took a second of surprise at being acknowledged before Shiro returned it and he did a subtle two finger salute before turning back around. Lance faced forward, barely missing another student who also wasn't paying attention to where they were going. When he recovered and found his pride, a warmth bloomed in his chest as he thought of his and Shiro's brief exchange.

...Alright, so maybe he wasn't as over Shiro as he thought he was.

Shaking his head free of thought, he walked faster to his office, wanting to hole up in there for a week so he wouldn't have to deal with his personal problems.

Yeah, he really needed the break to get there fast.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was partially inspired by my dear friend waffle-walks on tumblr <3 bless you waffle for always throwing headcanons around with me because they are half the reason this fic even got written lol

"Bruh, I forgot to tell you before, but congrats for getting with the prof!" Chad said the Monday after Thanksgiving break. The two of them were the first ones in the room before class started and Chad had walked down to where Shiro was seated.

"What?"

"I saw you guys at the party! After midterms? Congrats, dude. It was about time."

Shiro thought back to that night at the party. Chad, in his drunken state, had seen Shiro and Professor McClain about to go upstairs when they decided against it for fear someone might get the wrong idea. Apparently, someone had gotten the wrong idea anyway.

"Wait, Professor McClain?"

"Yeah, man!"

"No, no. We're not- we didn't-"

"It's okay, bruh. I'm not judging. I fully support you and Prof's 'homo-sapien' lifestyle. Besides," Chad leaned in and put the back of his hand to his mouth to whisper, despite them being alone. "I'm like, totally into dudes, too."

"...What?"

"I know right? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the ladies! But sometimes you realize you're into one of your bros and it's like, whoah! Unexpected, but chill. Plus, I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it."

Chad looked at Shiro with an eyebrow raised and nodded his head back in a _how you doin'_ gesture.

"Uh... thank you?"

"I know you're with the prof now, but, like, if you weren't, I would be _honored_ to let you to-"

"I'm not 'with' our professor. We haven't slept together, either."

"Ohh, right. It's hush-hush since he's a teacher. Gotcha," Chad winked.

"No, I'm serious-"

Other students started to enter the classroom, cutting their conversation short, and Chad moved back to his spot in the back row. Shiro shook his head, knowing he wouldn't be able to convince Chad there was nothing going on between him and Professor McClain, especially when that wasn't exactly true.

More students filtered in, and Shiro checked his phone, seeing that it was almost time for class to start and the professor still wasn't there. As 9 am came and went, Shiro was reminded of the first day of class. Professor McClain was running late and Shiro felt nervous, for reasons he didn't know.

It could have been leftover from his and Chad's conversation, though he didn't feel threatened by Chad's incorrect assumption about him and the professor. More likely it was because he and Professor McClain hadn't spoken about anything but Spanish in almost a month. They barely saw each other outside of class or tutoring sessions, and when they did, in passing or waiting in line at the cafeteria, it was awkward. The professor would either ignore him or send a quick smile his way before diverting his eyes. Shiro had to admire the man's willpower, but he missed when they could chat freely. He missed the man he'd fallen for.

About five minutes into class time, the brunet in question hurriedly walked into the room. The only thing Shiro could describe him looking like was a mess. His hair and shirt were disheveled and he had bags under his eyes. Everything about him screamed hungover, and Shiro wasn't sure he should laugh or feel bad for his teacher.

" _Hola, clase_ , sorry I'm late. I overslept."

The man moved a few papers around, tying to get organized so he could begin teaching. He didn't even take role, clearing his throat and starting his lecture right away.

However, it was obvious no one was paying attention. Shiro sure wasn't. He was too focused on the professor's neck, and more specifically, two hickeys that had made a home right above his collarbone - perfectly viewable from his unbuttoned collar.

"Professor," a girl named Maria said after a few minutes, "you've got a- um..."

"Huh? I have a what?" he said, still trying to catch his breath as he spoke.

"You have a hickey, sir. Two, actually," Shiro said with far more ice in his voice than intended. He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed. Thankfully, they hadn't.

But Professor McClain had. And he was staring at Shiro with a mixed expression of guilt and confusion as his face slowly turned red. He quickly adjusted his collar and cleared his throat, fastening another button for good measure.

"My apologies, class. That is highly inappropriate of me, I am so sorry-"

"Hey, we're just glad to know you got some," Chad called out. He and a few of his friends cheered, only making the professor's face turn a deeper shade of red.

"Um, well, you see..." he stuttered.

Sure, Shiro was jealous, but it pissed him off more that a few frat boys were making the professor feel bad. He turned around, ready to yell at the group, when Chad caught his eye. He sent Shiro a gesture, shaking a hand with his thumb and pinkie out, his tongue extended over his chin as he bit down on it, trying to silently convey a message of 'hell yeah, bro.' Shiro rolled his eyes and turned around, realizing anything he would say would only egg them on more. 

"Let's move on, shall we?" the brunet asked, trying to continue the lesson despite his face being redder than a tomato.

 

By the end of the class period, Professor McClain had calmed down and returned to his usual teacher persona and the rest of the students had nearly forgotten about the hickeys. Shiro, however, couldn't think of anything else. He hadn't taken a single note all hour. Instead, he sat in the front row, staring his teacher down, trying to piece together a story. Maybe they weren't hickeys. Maybe they were bruises from running into something. Or they were fake and the man had _wanted_ to embarrass himself in front of the whole class. Because _that_ makes sense.

No matter what explanation he tried to come up with, Shiro couldn't get rid of his jealousy. They can't be together because it's wrong, yet Professor McClain could go out and sleep around when he knew Shiro was _right there_ waiting for him? Okay, sure. Maybe Shiro was overreacting... and being slightly possessive, but he had a right to be at least a little upset.

As the class let out, Shiro decided it was time to break their vow of silence.

"Looks like you had a _great_ Thanksgiving, Professor," he asked, jealousy inherent in his voice.

"Do you need something, Shiro?" Professor McClain asked exasperatedly.

"Nothing, I was just wondering who you spent your break with. Was it a guy? A girl? Both?"

"It was a mistake."

"Oh, like it was with me?"

The man slammed the books he had in his hands down onto the table.

"I don't need to explain myself to you," he said, venom with every word. "I get that you're jealous and you know what? I would be too. But we're not together. We're not dating. You're still my student and I'm still your teacher."

"I-I-"

"You wanna know what's been going on? Fine. I'll tell you. I have been giving myself _shit_ over liking you, let alone kissing you. That only made it worse, alright? It's fucking eating me alive, Shiro. It's keeping me up at night and haunting my every thought. So yeah, maybe I wanted to have some fun and forget my shitty problems about my feelings for you for a while so I could stop pitying myself. So I went to a bar, got drunk, and met someone. Should I have slept with that guy? Probably not. But I did, and it was _my_ decision."

Professor McClain looked away, picking his books back up and putting them into his bag hastily.

"You know what the worst part is?" he continued. "It didn't help. Only made it worse. But even still, I don't owe you. Jack. Shit."

The last words were emphasized with a pointed finger in Shiro's direction.

Shiro blinked a few times. He hadn't been expecting to get chewed out, but he was glad he had. He'd been so in the dark of how the other man was feeling that it worried him. Now he knew. Now he could make it better.

"I'm so sorry. You should have told me... I didn't realize what you were going through. I was just-"

"I know," the brunet sighed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have bitched you out just now. I just..."

Professor McClain's eyes started watering and he folded his arms into himself. Shiro thought he looked so small in that moment. He wrapped his arms around his teacher, not caring if anyone walked in and saw them.

"I'm so fucking stressed out, Shiro," the professor said, leaning his head on Shiro's shoulder.

"I know," Shiro responded, rubbing small circles into the man's back.

"I can't anymore, Shiro. I can't do this. This...this weird dancing around each other and knowing about each other's feelings but not being able to do anything about it. It's too hard."

"I know, Shiro comforted. "It's hard for me too."

Professor McClain took a shaky breath in and gently pushed Shiro away.

"I- I think it would be better if we didn't see each other outside of class anymore. At all," he said, stepping away. "I want you to find a new tutor. You and I both know I've never been the only one."

"But, sir-"

"I think it'd be good for both of us," he said before Shiro could argue. "Please Shiro, do this for me. Understand where I'm at."

"I do," Shiro nodded. And he did. He didn't want the other man to be fired because of him. He didn't want to be the cause of stress, and if being around him would make the professor more stressed, then he'd stay away.

"Thank you."

It was Shiro who left first this time, knowing there was nothing else he could do to comfort the younger man. As he turned around to leave, he was reminded again how small his professor looked, standing there alone in a big empty classroom.

"See you in class, Professor."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me, reading over my own story, screaming: NO!!! SHIRO GO BACK!!! KISS HIM!!! MAKE IT BETTER NO ASDFGHJKL
> 
> lololol
> 
> also, Chad, the true bisexual icon
> 
> (idk why y'all are all obsessed with him, like he wasn't supposed to be that important but half the comments on this fic are about him so i figured i should at least give him some sort of redeeming quality. and yes, chad wants shiro to top him, pass it around)


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas Break

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know, i know. a christmas chapter before halloween?? how dare i. but i wanted to get this put out because i'm........so excited. :) big things happening in this chapter.
> 
> also, sorry if this chapter seems choppy. when i write, i think of how it would happen in a movie, so some of the "scenes" might not finish like you'd expect but i hope it all still makes sense
> 
> thanks to my bff chelsey for beta-ing because i was feeling self conscious lol hit her up on tumblr at weeb-overlord or ao3 at weeb_overlord (she writes ereri if ur into that)
> 
> hope you enjoy! <3

Final exams for the semester were finally over. Lance was ready to relax with his family back in Cuba, but he was still stuck in town for another week. As he left the classroom after giving his last test, he suddenly remembered he'd left something in his office and needed to grab it before going home.

He got to his office and got his keys out, but as he tried to unlock the door, he found it was already open.

_I could've sworn I locked this door..._

Stepping inside and turning on the light, he understood right away why his door was open. On his desk sat a plastic gift bag, waiting for him. He walked over and pulled out the tissue paper, a small card with _Professor McClain_ written on the envelope falling onto the desk.

"Oh, Coran didn't have to-"

 _Hey, Professor,_ the card read.

Wait. That wasn't Coran's handwriting. He'd recognize that handwriting anywhere. No, this was...

_I know how much you love blue sweaters. Maybe this one will actually keep you warm._

_Love, Shiro_

Lance set the card down and stuck his hand into the bag. When he brought it back up, he pulled out a soft, navy blue sweater. He unfolded it and held it out in front of him, noting that it was a little big, but that was most likely the point since Shiro himself loved oversized sweaters. He brought the sweater close to his chest and right away he felt warmer. He breathed in and realized it smelled like Christmas and male cologne, probably from sitting in Shiro's apartment.

"Hmm," he sighed. Lance was glad that although they hadn't spoken in weeks, Shiro hadn't forgotten about him. He hadn't forgotten about Shiro either.

It had been hard, the two of them not speaking. In class, Shiro was barely outspoken, which most of the class noticed, Lance was sure. Perhaps they all thought Shiro stopped flirting with the professor because he'd gotten in trouble, or started dating someone else. No matter what, the subject was thankfully never brought up.

Outside of class was worse. There were furtive glances full of longing from each man - both of them getting caught staring numerous amounts - but it was nothing either of them ever did something about. Despite not talking, the two of them maintained their feelings for each other. Or, at least, Lance had. But he was certain then as he held the sweater in his arms that his feelings remained mutual.

Lance wasn't the best knitter, but he wanted to do something nice and personal for Shiro to show he still cared. So he'd knitted a grey and black scarf for him. He just wasn't sure how he would get it to him. The fact that the man had left Lance's present on his desk either meant he'd already left for the break, or he didn't want to see Lance. Both of which were understandable.

He folded the sweater again and put it back in the sack, grabbing his things to go home and knowing that as soon as he put the sweater on, he'd never want to take it off. In the back of his mind, he wished for a chance to see Shiro over the break so he could give him his gift before Christmas.

 

\--

 

Lance had just placed his order at the bakery & cafe near his apartment and was looking for a place to sit. The place was crowded on a Saturday evening, most people probably there to beat the cold outside. It was a cozy little shop, the perfect place to snuggle and eat with a loved one...

Lance rolled his eyes and brushed off the idea of having a date there with a certain male student. He turned around, hoping to find a place in the corner, when he heard his name called.

"Professor McClain?"

"Shiro?"

Sitting in the back of the cafe was Shiro. He was eating alone in a booth, his laptop open next to him and wearing warm clothing as he sipped something from a mug.

"Hey, how's your break?" he asked.

"It's nice. Us teachers don't get as much time off as you guys, because of grading tests and whatnot. But I'm enjoying having some time to myself. I'm actually going home to Cuba in a few days to see my family for Christmas."

"Sounds fun!" Shiro smiled. "Oh, uh, won't you sit down?"

"I would, Shiro, but..."

"Hey, I'm technically not your student now that the semester's over, right? It's fine."

Lance looked around, looking for any reason to decline Shiro's offer, but the lack of empty tables made it hard to turn him down. He sighed softly to himself before turning back to smile and nod at Shiro. Shiro moved his laptop off the table to make room for Lance, and soon they were sitting across from each other in the small booth.

"You're wearing the sweater," Shiro said once Lance's food had arrived.

"Yeah, I've worn it almost every day since I got it. It's super comfortable. Thank you so much."

"Of course. It's a great color on you."

"Well, you would know, wouldn't you, Mr. Fashion Icon," Lance laughed. He'd missed this more than he cared to admit. "I have a gift for you too, actually. It's in my car. Remind me to give it to you before we leave."

"You didn't have to do that."

"I know," Lance smiled.

They were silent as they ate, both nice and warm despite the cold outside.

"I've missed you," Shiro said quietly after a while.

"I've missed you too. I'm... sorry I pushed you away."

"It's alright. I understand. You were just trying to look out for yourself. _I'm_ sorry for putting you in such a compromising position."

"No, no, no. It's not your fault. If I didn't have any interest in you, none of this would have even happened. But I did - and I still do. I was just scared of what that meant. I should have looked out for you, too. I didn't even think to ask how you felt about the situation."

"Honestly, I felt awful about the whole thing. I felt guilty for kissing you in the first place, but then you kissed me back and it messed with my head a little. I think I was really starting to feel deeply for you, but it was suddenly ripped away from me when you stopped talking to me altogether. I was confused and angry for a while. I had to look at it from your perspective before I realized it was for the best, though."

"I'm so sorry, Shiro."

"It's okay. Like I said, I understand. I agree that we needed a break from each other. I'm just glad I got to see you in class. And I get to see you now."

Lance put his hand on top of Shiro's as it rested on the table. He fingers slid around the underside and his thumb brushed over Shiro's knuckles gently. They shared smiles and Lance squeezed Shiro's hand gently before he putting his back in his lap.

"Speaking of classes," he asked, "why did you register for my Spanish 2 class next semester?"

"I want to see you. And if taking your class is the only way, I'll take any and all classes you teach until I graduate next year."

"You're really hooked on me, huh?" Lance joked.

"I've told you before," Shiro smiled, "I'm not a quitter."

Lance looked at Shiro with a fond expression. It was true what they say, 'absence makes the heart grow fonder.' Lance definitely felt so much more for Shiro after their time away. He'd been a jerk and pushed Shiro away, and the man had respected his wishes by keeping his distance. Yet somehow, after all Lance had put him through, he still wanted to be with him.

"I'll make you a deal, Takashi Shirogane. You switch out of my class, and we can say this is our first date."

"Really? Wait, but then who will I take Spanish 2 from?"

"Professor Holt teaches Spanish."

"Isn't she a science professor?"

"Oh, sorry, I forgot they were siblings. Yes, Katie Holt teaches science, Matt Holt teaches Spanish."

"Okay, then. I'll take Spanish 2 from Matt Holt, and this is our first date."

 

\--

 

"Did you walk here?"

"Yeah, I don't have a car."

"Shiro, it's freezing! Let me drive you home."

"Yes, sir," Shiro joked.

They got into the car and Lance pulled a sack from the back seat.

"Here, this is for you. Merry Christmas, Shiro."

"Thank you."

Shiro pulled out the grey and black scarf that Lance had knitted for him and wrapped it around his neck.

"It's so soft."

"I'm glad you like it. I got yarn that I thought would keep you warm while still being light and soft."

"Wait, you made this?"

"Yeah, I knit... sometimes."

"Wow, look at you, Mr. Romance."

"Pfft, it's just a scarf."

"A scarf that you crafted with your own hands specifically for me."

"Hmm, I guess I like you a little bit." Lance winked and started the car.

 

"So, eating together, giving each other Christmas gifts... Are we dating now?" Shiro asked once they were driving. "Is that what this is?"

"You're still a student, so I don't think it would be wise if we continued to date throughout the spring semester. But maybe just in between semesters?"

"What if we weren't public about it and kept it a secret from everyone? No one has to know what you do at home. I mean, people know me, but they won't know you're doing me."

"Stop!" Lance laughed at the man's suggestive comment.

"Well?" Shiro smiled.

"I will think about it."

 

\--

 

"Alright, this is your stop," Lance said, pulling into a parking space by Shiro's apartment complex.

"Do you want to come in?"

"I-I shouldn't. I mean, what if someone sees-"

"I have hot chocolate."

"Shiro..."

"Please, Lance?"

Lance was quiet a moment as he thought. He smiled at Shiro before nodding his head and turning his car off.

Snow started falling around them as they walked to the front of the apartment, making them drift together to stay warm.

 

\--

 

"One hot chocolate for you, good sir," Shiro said, leaning over the bar in the kitchen to hand Lance his drink, "and one for me."

"Thank you," Lance said, taking the mug and holding it close to him for warmth.

"Do you want to hang your coat up?"

"Not yet, I'm still cold," he shivered.

"No worries. Make yourself at home. Take a seat if you want."

Lance followed Shiro and sat by him on the couch before taking a careful sip of the hot beverage. He hummed as warmth ran through him.

"This is really good, Shiro."

"Thank you! I use milk and chocolate syrup along with the powder so that it's extra savory. ...Like you."

"You've already won me over, you don't have to keep using terrible lines, you know."

"I know. But it's fun to see you blush."

"Ugh," Lance groaned, rolling his eyes and smiling as he felt his face flush with heat.

"I can put on some music if you want?"

"Sure. Set the Christmas-y mood."

Shiro got up and plugged his phone into a speaker near the couch. Lance watched as he flipped through a few songs to find the perfect one, smirking as he found it. He looked over at Lance and set his phone down as twinkling music started playing.

"No," Lance said, knowing right away what song it was.

"Oh, yes."

_IIIIII...don't want....a lot foooorr Christmaaas..._

"Why?"

"The lyrics mean a lot to me," Shiro teased, starting to lip sync with the words.

_There is just one thing IIIII neeed..._  
_I don't care about the presents...underneath the Christmas treee..._

"I think I hate this song even more now," Lance laughed as Shiro over dramatically mouthed along.

_I just want you for my ooowwn... Mooore than you could ever knooowww..._  
_Make my wish come trruuuuuuuuuuuee..._

"Oh, my God," Lance said at Shiro's twitching mouth and emotional performance fist.

_Aaaall I want...for Christmaaas... iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiss... yoooooooouuuuuuuu_

Shiro held out a finger towards Lance as Mariah held out her note.

"Alright, alright. You made your point. Unfortunately, I'll be in Cuba so you can't have me for Christmas," Lance teased.

Shiro gasped and put a hand over his heart. He turned back to his phone and found a different song, pouting as he hit play.

_I-I'll ha-ave a bluueee... Christmaaass... without yooouu..._

"Thank you, Elvis. You know, when you said you were going to put on music, I thought you meant something romantic."

"Excuse me? I'll have you know that Mariah Carey's vocal riffing is the highest form of romance known to man. But I'll put something else on just for you."

"Thank you."

Shiro looked at his phone one last time and typed something in before pressing play. A swirl of brass instruments and piano came flowing from the speaker as Shiro walked over to where Lance was seated. He plucked the drink from Lance's hand and sat it on the coffee table before pulling the man to stand up.

"I was drinking that."

"I know. You can finish it later. Dance with me."

_The snow is snowing and the wind it is blowing but I can weather the storm..._

"Is this Dean Martin?" Lance asked, placing a hand on Shiro's shoulder and entwining their fingers with the other.

"It is."

They started swaying together as the song played, listening to the lyrics as they came.

_What do I care how much it may storm? I've got my love to keep me warm._

"You know something?" Lance asked quietly.

"What?"

"You called me 'Lance.'"

"I did."

"You've never called me that before."

"Am I supposed to just call you 'Professor' the rest of my life?"

"Make sure you switch out of my class before the semester starts and you can call me whatever you want."

_I can not remember the worst December. Just watch those icicles form._

"Does that mean-"

"Maybe. Convince me."

Shiro moved closer, putting his face right next to Lance's, and dropped his voice down to a whisper.

"Will do... _querido_."

Lance put his hand on the side of Shiro's face, making Shiro look back up into his eyes.

"Now, I _know_ I didn't teach you that one."

"Google Translate does wonders for the hopeless romantic."

"That explains some of your homework assignments," Lance smiled mischievously.

_What do I care if icicles form? I've got my love to keep my warm._

As if on cue, they both leaned in and pressed their lips together. Lance released his other hand from Shiro's and brought it around his neck, pulling him closer. Shiro moaned and pressed further into Lance, holding the back of his head as he kissed into Lance's mouth.

_Off with my overcoat, off with my gloves. Who needs an overcoat? I'm burning' with love._

Shiro started pulling on Lance's coat, lips staying connected as he helped Lance get out of it.

"I think you put this song on so you could find an excuse to undress me," Lance said breathily.

"I've been waiting all semester, can you blame me?"

Shiro dipped down to Lance's collarbone and placed quick kisses and nips along it before trailing upwards.

"M-My drink's gonna get cold."

"I have a microwave," Shiro said into Lance's skin. 

He kissed into the crook of Lance's neck, causing the younger man to shiver. Lance choked out a gasp as Shiro sucked, creating a hickey in the soft skin there.

"You okay there, Professor?" Shiro asked, smirking at the blissful look on Lance's face.

"Mmm, _don't_ remind me you're a student when we're about to desecrate Dean Martin," Lance said, emphasizing his point by pulling on the scarf around Shiro's neck.

He captured Shiro's lips again and the older man walked them over to the couch before pushing Lance down onto it.

_I thought you oughta know my heart's on fire. The flames, they just leap higher. So I will weather the storm!_

"Come here."

Lance pulled on Shiro's scarf again so he'd climb on top of him and their mouths were quickly on each other again.

_What do I care how much it'll storm? I've got my love..._

"Lance..."

_To keep me warm..._

"Mm, Shiro..."

_I've got my love to keep me waaarm!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know what you're thinking, "does this mean all the angst is over?"
> 
> hahaha, no my dear children, it does not. <3 but at least the babies can be happy (for now)
> 
> fun fact: dean martin died on christmas day in my birth year so i feel extra bad for defiling him but yanno, that's what we gotta do for a good story.
> 
> querido means darling/dear and i thought that was just real cute (thanks google translate)
> 
> i'm in such a christmas-y mood after this chapter kms
> 
> the songs i referenced (in order) are:  
> All I Want For Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey  
> Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley  
> I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm - Dean Martin


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas Break part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry about such a long wait between chapters! i’m still in school and it’s hard to find time to write sometimes.
> 
> that being said, this fic will have a small hiatus while i finish up the semester. i have two secret santas to write, as well as a few other fics to work on (plus finals and all that), so i won’t have as much time to work on this one. but not to worry! there is an end in sight for this fic, i’m not abandoning it!
> 
> so without further ado, i hope you like this next little chapter (oh and, slight nsfw warning for the beginning, you’re welcome) <3

"Fuck, Shiro!"

"Hah- Lance...Hnn-!"

"Agh!" Lance cried as he came all over his chest.

Shiro pushed in a few more times, calling out Lance's name as he followed a few seconds later.

"Fffff-ah-uck... Okay," Lance breathed heavily at his oversensitivity. "Okay. Hmm... Pull- Pull out..."

"Yeah... Ahh..."

Shiro groaned and rolled over, pulling the condom off and throwing it in the trash can next to his bed. He grabbed the towel on his bedside table and wiped Lance down before discarding it as well.

"Mmm... Thank you," Lance said, crawling over and placing a hand on Shiro's naked chest as he cuddled up to him.

"Thank _you_."

Shiro put a finger under Lance's chin and pushed his face up to meet his. He pressed a long kiss to Lance's lips, bringing out a low giggle from the younger man.

"You make me feel all sorts of ways," he said dreamily, tracing circles on Shiro's collarbone. "But I need to head home soon. My plane leaves early in the morning and I haven't even packed yet."

He made to get up, but Shiro pulled him back down.

"No, stay with me for Christmas."

"I have to see my family and so do you."

"Noooo!"

"Shiro-!"

Lance was cut off as he was tugged against Shiro's chest and suddenly flipped over onto his back again with Shiro hovering over him.

"I don't want you to leave yet."

"I've been here every day the past five days."

"That's not enough."

"I know... I know. It's not enough for me either. But we'll have more time together when I get back, okay?" Lance asked, cupping Shiro's cheek.

"Okay." The man leaned down and pressed a kiss to Lance's lips. Then pressed his whole body down and rutted against him.

Lance moaned in response, still sensitive from their previous activities.

"Are you seriously already up again? How do you have this much stamina? I'm younger than you, yet I feel like the old one."

"I'm making up for lost time, can you blame me?"

"Not at all," the brunet said, wrapping his arms around Shiro and kissing him lazily.

"So... One more round before you go?" Shiro said when he pulled away.

"You just want me to be uncomfortable the whole plane ride, don't you?"

"That way you won't forget about me," Shiro lilted, lightly sucking on Lance's neck, making sure not to leave a mark per the younger man's request. ("If my sisters see, they'll never let me live it down and my mother will make me bring the 'lucky girl' down to meet the entire family," he'd said.)

"Mm, I don't think I could ever forget about you. But I guess one more round couldn't hurt."

"Not if we use enough lube," Shiro teased, jumping up to grab a new condom and lube from the bedside drawer.

Lance just laughed, happy to spend more time with Shiro and relieved that the bulk of his guilt and anxiety of the past semester melted away with every kiss the two of them shared.

 

\--

 

"Okay, I really have to go now. I'll call you if and when I get alone time from my family," Lance said a few hours later, pushing away Shiro's persistent kisses as he headed to the door.

"You promise?"

"I promise," he said as he reached for the handle.

He turned around to say goodbye and Shiro was on him in a second. The older man pushed Lance against the door and leaned into him to prevent him from leaving his hold. He pulled off Lance's glasses before pressing their lips together, kissing the daylights out of his former professor.

"I wish I could spend Christmas Day with you," Shiro whispered in the space separating their lips as he pulled away slightly.

"Maybe one day you can," Lance whispered back, a silent vow breathed between them. "But," he pushed against Shiro's chest, "not this year. We both have appearances to upkeep, and I have a plane to catch."

Lance booped Shiro's nose cutely and grabbed his glasses back, turning around as he put them on. Then, he opened the door and finally stepped outside the apartment into the cloudy afternoon.

Shiro grabbed his hand gently before he could walk away, still unable to depart just yet. "Are you sure you don't want me to drive you in your car tomorrow?" he said, hanging on the door. "Save you some money?"

"Appearances, remember? Uber's not that expensive, don't worry." Lance smiled. "Merry Christmas, have fun with your parents, and I'll see you when I get back."

"Goodbye, Professor,” he winked, slowly letting go of Lance’s hand.

"Be a good boy, Takashi."

 

Lance adjusted his bag on his shoulder as he walked down the steps towards the gate; Shiro's apartment was thankfully only a short distance from the front of the complex. The cool winter air hit his warm face and nipped at his nose, making him smile despite the slight limp in his step. He was enjoying his short walk to his car parked on the street outside the gate when he heard a familiar voice a few yards away.

"Professor McClain?"

_Shit._

It was winter break! The place was supposed to be deserted. Who on Earth could have been out there to see him?

He turned around as Lindsay and a girl that he hadn't seen before walked towards him.

"Hello!" he waved, trying to be nonchalant. “Why aren’t you girls home for the holidays?”

_Yeah, ‘cause that’s not a suspicious thing to say, Lance._

"We’re both from the area, so we decided to stay in our apartment over break,” Lindsay said. “What are you doing here, Professor?"

"Uh, I was just... bringing something to the housing office for someone," he lied.

"Well, the housing office is on the other side of the complex."

"Oh! Thank you. I guess I got a little lost since I've never been here before," he said, perhaps a bit too obvious.

"Yeah, you just go past the 500s and take a left and it should be there."

"Thank you! I'll head there right away. You girls have a nice break!"

"You too, sir!"

Lance started walking in the opposite direction of his car until Lindsay and her friend were out of sight. Once he knew he was in the clear, he snuck to his car and let out a deep breath.

Since it was winter break, most students were home for the holidays. Lance hadn't run into anyone the first few days he'd gone to visit Shiro. Even if he had, he was young enough that he almost blended in. But one of _his_ students seeing him? That he certainly didn't expect. Though through some miracle, he'd gotten away with it.

"I can't believe I got away with it," he muttered to himself.

Shooting a quick text to Shiro, he started his car and drove to his own apartment.

_We should be more careful. One of my students saw me as I was leaving the complex. I got away with it since she didn't see where I came from, but that might not be the case next time._

As he pulled up to a stop light, his phone dinged and he picked it up to see Shiro's response.

_I guess that means I'm coming to your apartment from now on._

The light turned green and Lance put his phone back down, smiling as he drove, the idea of coming home to an awaiting Shiro at the forefront of his mind.

 

\--

 

" _¡Feliz Navidad!_ "

"And a Merry Christmas to you, too. You finally got away from your family?"

"Well, no. But I got a couple of minutes alone time since I volunteered to go to the store _on Christmas day_ because my mother ran out of eggs," Lance said on the phone, walking down the aisle at the only grocery store open.

"How do you run out of eggs?" Shiro laughed. "Did she not know she would need a lot?"

"Oh no, she did. She had a whole dozen and a half eggs this morning. I told you I can't call you at night because I have to share a room with three other people? Yeah, my _tia_ came over this morning and brought her husband and four teenage boys and damn, can they eat. _Mamá_ went through an entire carton just for them. Of course, as a professor that teaches fresh-out-of-high-school students, I've had enough teenagers to last me a lifetime already, so I wanted to get out of the house. Plus, it gave me time to call you."

"I'm glad you did. And at a perfect time, too. My parents just laid down to take their Christmas Day Naps so that we can go visit my sister later this evening. She just had a baby so we said we'd go to her this year."

"Ah! You never told me you were an uncle! Let alone that you have a sister."

"Oh, yeah. I guess I forgot. She and I don't talk much anymore, so I don't even think to bring her up in conversation."

"Why not?"

"When my family found out I liked boys, there was a big blow out. It took a while, but my parents came around eventually. My sister is taking more time. It sucks because we used to be really close but now she only talks to me if she has to. I can't tell if it's because I didn't tell her sooner or because she really is just that homophobic."

"I understand. I told my parents during college that I was gay and my father refused to even acknowledge me for a month. I’m pretty sure by now they’ve blocked my coming out from their minds. And my extended family still doesn't know, so all weekend I've just been hearing ' _ay, sobrino_ , when are you going to bring your girlfriend down to meet us?'" Lance said with an over dramatic accent. "It's getting annoying, to be honest."

"Just tell them all you have a boyfriend and see their reactions."

"Haha! Yeah, right. I don't want to ruin Chri- Wait.” Lance stopped dead in his tracks. “Boyfriend?”

"Hmm?"

"You told me to tell my family I have a boyfriend."

"Yes, I did."

"Do I have a boyfriend?"

"I...don't know. Do you?" Shiro said teasingly.

"I guess that depends,” Lance continued, walking the few paces to the egg section and perusing the selection for the ones his mother told him to get.

“On?”

“If you want to be my boyfriend or not.”

Shiro was silent a moment before he answered, “D-Do you want me to be?"

"...Yes,” Lance breathed.

"Then, yes. I want to be your boyfriend."

The brunet smiled as he looked at the cartons of eggs in front of him. He reached for one, then paused as if remembering something.

“Wait, so what would have happened if I had said ‘no’?” 

“I would’ve said ‘yes’ anyway.”

Lance laughed at the man, a warm happiness bubbling inside of him. He grabbed the carton of eggs and paid for them, walking back to his car.

“Wow. My very own boyfriend,” he said. “I mean, I still can’t tell them about you.”

“What? Why not?”

“They’ll ask where we met and I can’t very well say that you’re a student _and_ a boy without there being an uproar about both. But don’t worry, I’ll tell them eventually.”

“Well, until then, I’m glad you’re my boyfriend.”

“And I’m glad you’re mine.”

 

\--

 

“I can’t wait. Tell your sister Merry Christmas for me. Haha! I know. Okay. I’ll see you soon, alright? Bye,” Lance smiled, hanging up the phone as he walked up the driveway with the eggs under his arm.

“Who was that?”

“Oh sh-!” Lance jumped, nearly dropping the eggs. “Mari! You scared me.”

“Sorry. Who were you talking to on the phone just now?” Lance’s oldest sister Mari asked again, straight to business.

She looked just like Lance, only female. She was mischievous, flirty, and the nosiest person alive. Lance loved her more than anyone else in the world. Except for when she butted into his business.

“Uh, no one. Just a friend.”

“‘Just a friend’ doesn’t sound like ‘no one,’” she said, an eyebrow raised. “Let me guess. It was your girlfriend that you won’t tell us about.”

“For the last time, Mari. I don’t have a girlfriend,” Lance sighed. Then considered. Then spoke again. “I have a boyfriend.”

For probably the first time in Lance’s life, his sister was speechless.

“W- Uh... What?!” she finally said. “You have a boyfr-?!”

“Shh! I don’t want everyone to know, alright?”

“Why not?!”

“Uh, because it’ll ruin Christmas if _Abuela_ finds out I’m gay.”

“It won’t ruin-“

“I don’t care. Just. Please, keep it a secret between us for now, okay?”

“Alright, fine,” she conceded before punching his arm. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were gay!”

“Ow,” he said in response, rubbing the spot she’d hit.

“So, tell me about this boyfriend. He’s who you’ve been texting all weekend, isn’t he?”

“Yes.”

“Where did you guys meet?”

“We, uh, met at the school I’m working at,” he said, bracing for the impact of his sister yelling at him for dating a student. But it didn’t come.

“Oh! Is he like, a teacher or something?”

“Nnn...yes. He’s like a teacher, or something,” he smiled.

It wasn’t technically a lie, since Shiro fell under the ‘or something’ category. 

“That’s awesome, _tete_! What’s his name?”

Mari was beaming, so happy for her baby brother. Lance knew she’d keep his secret, and in all honesty, he was glad he had someone he could talk to about it. Even if he couldn’t tell her everything.

“His name is Shiro.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonus points if you recognize Mari from another one of my fics ;)
> 
> in case you didn’t read the beginning notes, a short hiatus starts now! see you guys soon! <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beginning of the new semester.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heeyyyyy 
> 
> it’s been 84 years......but i’m back with more ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 
> 
> this chapter kind of just sets up what’s to come, so sorry if it’s a little boring, but i promise the next chapter will be much more exciting ;)

“ _Hola, clase. Me llamo Profesor McClain._ Welcome to Beginner Spanish 2!”

The second semester of Lance’s first year of teaching had just begun. Already he felt much more excited and put together than his first semester. Less nervous too. About teaching, that is. About getting caught? He was definitely worried about that. But he pushed those thoughts aside as he went through his attendance sheet, noting that nearly all the students were the same ones from his Spanish 1 class last semester. In fact, there was only one specific student missing from the front row.

“Looks like all of you were in my class last semester, so we don’t have to worry about going around and introducing ourselves-“

“Where’s Shiro?” the girl named Lindsay asked.

“Uhhh...”

“Don’t tell me you kicked him out, teach’?” said Chad from the back of the room.

“I- What? No, no, h-he left of his own accord,” Lance said, trying to stave off his blushing. “Now, let’s get back to-“

“Listen, Prof. It’s the first day of class. We know you don’t have homework for us, and we all know your syllabus,” Chad pushed, dropping his voice lower for his next statement. “But what we don’t know, it’s what’s going on with you and Shiro.”

Lance didn’t know how to respond to that. He had to give it to Chad for being persistent, but also it was none of his students’ business what, or who, he did outside of school.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he tried. And failed.

“Oh, come on, Professor,” another girl, named Maria, said. “We all know there was something going on between you two.”

Lance remained quiet as the other bodies in the room stared him down, silently begging for answers. What would he tell them? ‘Shiro’s not in my class because we agreed it would be more morally right for us to date if he wasn’t my student anymore?’ Yeah, there was no way Lance was going to tell them that. In fact, he wasn’t going to tell them anything. Because if Lance even gave off the slightest impression that he and Shiro were together, he knew gossip would travel and he’d get fired when his boss inevitably found out. Besides, he didn’t owe them any explanation.

He adjusted his glasses and stared down the class sternly.

“I don’t know why Mr. Shirogane decided not to take my class this semester, but no matter the reason, it is his business and his alone. And as for any implications that something is ‘going on between us,’ I’d like that to be put to rest right this minute. Student-teacher relationships are frowned upon at this institution, and despite Mr. Shirogane’s constant flirting last semester, he knew about that rule and I made sure of it. Now, can we all please act like adults and move on?” Lance said, ending his rant firmly.

The other students nodded their heads, quietly agreeing to let the subject go and not bring it up again. Lance hoped. He’d just lied directly to all of his students. If he didn’t already have so much on his plate, he might have actually felt guilty about it. But it didn’t really matter. He saved himself and Shiro from suspicion, at least for another day, and that was good enough for him.

“Thank you. Back to it, then,” he said, turning back to the chalkboard to start the first lesson of the day.

 

\--

 

“I have a confession to make.”

“What?” Hunk asked Lance in the faculty lounge in between classes later that day. “What is it?” he said after Lance gave him a look.

“I...lied to my students today,” Lance said, preparing himself for the bomb he was about to drop.

“Okay... What did you tell them?”

Hunk picked up his coffee cup to take a sip as Lance let out the breath he was holding.

“I told them that I’m not dating Shiro.”

Hunk raised an eyebrow at Lance as he took a few sips of his coffee. When Lance gave him a sheepish look, only then did Hunk catch the hint and he nearly choked on his coffee at the realization.

“You’re _what_?!” Hunk said once he’d recovered from his coughing fit.

“Shh!” Lance hushed. “You want the whole school to find out?”

“Lance... You’re dating a student,” Hunk said, quietly this time.

“I know. I know, it’s really bad, Hunk. But I can’t help it. We just... It’s as if we were meant for each other. A-And it’s not like he’s super young! He’s older than me.”

“Who’s older than you?”

Lance turned around with wide eyes when he realized he and Hunk were no longer alone. The science teacher Katie Holt, also known as Pidge to some of her closer friends, had just walked in and heard the last bit of their conversation.

“Uhh...” Lance stalled, trying to come up with a fake answer.

“His boyfriend,” Hunk supplied.

“Hunk!”

“Your boyfriend?” Pidge said, thinking back. “Oh, that one student with the prosthetic arm, right?”

“Wha- How did- Who-“

“I wasn’t sure, but you just confirmed it,” she smirked. “Don’t worry, I’m not gonna tell on you.”

“How did you know?” Lance said, finally able to form words.

“I’m just very observant. I’ve seen you both stare at each other from afar for months now. I knew there had to be something going on.”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Hmm, not exactly. I’m a bit smarter than the average student...and teacher. But I’ll say this: just be glad Coran isn’t as _observant_ as I am, because if you’re not careful, you’ll lose your job.”

“I know! Ugh, trust me, the guilt of even liking him ate me alive last semester,” Lance admitted. He hadn’t felt as low as he did the past semester since the first time he came out to his parents. “But now that he and I are together I feel... right. Like this was supposed to be and that I shouldn’t beat myself up about it as much. Yes, we still need to be careful, which is why I made him take Spanish with your brother this semester. But honestly it’s kind of exhilarating to have to hide it, even though it sucks we can’t be open about it.”

“Wow,” Hunk said, sitting back and crossing his arms over his chest. “You really like this guy, huh.”

“I... Yeah, I really do,” Lance smiled. 

He knew his friends may not completely understand, but he couldn’t explain the way Shiro made him feel. It was more than just some infatuation. He could see a future with their relationship. One where they could be open about how they felt about each other. But if they weren’t careful, those feelings may get them in trouble.

“Please don’t tell anyone, you guys. Not even Allura, Hunk.”

“I won’t,” Hunk assured.

“Me neither,” said Pidge.

“Thank you.”

As if on cue, Allura, Hunk’s wife and the main French teacher, in all her stunning beauty, walked into the lounge.

“ _Bonjour_ ,” she said, coming over to the table to see her husband. She gave him a quick peck on the lips before smiling up at the other two. “What’s going on?”

“Oh, nothing,” Hunk said. “We’re just talking about some of our problem students.”

Lance held back the urge to roll his eyes, and he smiled at Allura, who looked intrigued by the topic of conversation.

“Oh boy, do I have some of those...” she started.

“There’s too many people here now,” Pidge said, taking one last sip of her coffee before putting her mug in the sink and moving to leave. “I’m out.”

“I’ll go with you,” Lance said, following her. “I have a class soon anyway.”

“Cool. Nice to see you, Allura.”

“You too, Katie.”

“Ugh, I don’t want to walk all the way to the science building,” Pidge groaned.

“Then why do you come here when the science building has a teacher’s lounge of its own?” asked Lance as they walked out.

“The coffee here is better.”

The two left, leaving Allura and Hunk alone in the large room. Hunk scooted his chair back to allow his wife to sit on his lap, and she gazed over at where their friends had just been.

“Is it just me, or is Lance a lot happier now than last semester?,” she asked.

Hunk nodded as he patted his wife’s leg before smiling up at her.

“Yeah,” he said, “he really is.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance meets up with Shiro...during school hours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the short chapters, i hope they’re sufficient for you guys <3 (hopefully the next chapter will be worth it, though)

_Meet me in the janitor’s closet by the men’s restroom on the second floor_.

Lance stared at the text from his boyfriend on his way to class. He had a few extra minutes before class started, so he made his way up to the second floor to find the closet in question.

They hadn’t seen each other since coming back to school, and Lance missed his boyfriend. So he wasn’t surprised when he made it to the nearly empty hallway and opened the closet to find his boyfriend inside pulling him close and shutting the door behind them.

“I missed you so much,” Shiro said as soon as the door was shut, kissing and biting at Lance’s lips desperately.

“Mm, I missed you too,” Lance moaned quietly, trying not to draw attention to their little closet from outside ears. “We haven’t seen each other in person since... Uh, haha, since...mmm...”

“Since before Christmas,” Shiro finished for his boyfriend, who was too distracted by Shiro’s wandering hands to make complete sentences. 

“Yeah, that.”

Shiro’s left hand made its way into Lance’s hair, pulling on it sharply to make Lance expose his neck, while the other hand rested perfectly on the younger man’s ass, gripping it tightly as Shiro moved closer to him. He kissed down Lance’s neck, sucking little nips into his skin and pulling out small gasps from deep in his throat. Meanwhile Lance just let it all happen, not caring about the disarray he was being thrown into.

“Ah, Sh-Shiro...”

“Take off your glasses. I want to see your beautiful eyes,” Shiro said, pulling off the thin frames himself and setting them down on the shelf behind them.

Lance opened his eyes and gazed at his boyfriend, who was also looking like a complete mess in front of him.

“God, you’re so beautiful,” the man said.

And oh, how Shiro drove Lance crazy. It was hard over the break not to fly back early just to see him. Every secret video chat, every suggestive text message, every silent phone call in the middle of the night that made Lance feel like he was taking more cold showers than hot ones anymore. Every little pent up emotion Lance had to hide from his family were letting loose as Shiro pulled him in for another hungry kiss.

“Fuck, I wanna take you, right here and now,” Shiro whispered hoarsely, grinding down on Lance’s hip. “Why didn’t you come see me when once you got back?”

“I- I told you, ah-! My flight got in late yesterday and I had to get ready for the first day of class.”

“...Poor excuse,” Shiro teased.

He moved back down and undid the top button of Lance’s dress shirt, moving it aside so he could easily suck a hickey into soft skin of Lance’s collarbone. Lance keened at the feeling, having missed the way Shiro could easily bruise him.

It probably wasn’t the smartest idea, making out in a janitor’s closet where anyone could walk in and see a teacher with a knee between his thighs getting marked up by a student during school hours. But damn, it felt too good to not let Shiro continue. He was thankful Shiro at least had the common decency to give him a hickey under his shirt, that way it wouldn’t show for any of his classes.

Classes...

 _Oh shit, class_.

“Shiro- Sh-Shiro, wait. I have to go, I have a class in...” Lance looked at his watch. “Five minutes?! Fuck, Shiro, I really have to go.” He pushed his unrelenting boyfriend off of him, patting down his hair and picking up his glasses to put back on. “I’m sorry, I’ll make it up to you later, I promise.”

“Okay, okay. Sorry. I know. I just...needed to see you,” Shiro said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“It’s okay, babe. I’m always glad to see you,” Lance smiled. “But now I have to go.”

He put on his glasses and pecked his boyfriend’s lips once more, picking up his forlorn briefcase and presenting himself to Shiro to make sure he looked class ready. Shiro nodded, signaling Lance was good to go, and the professor turned to open the door before a warm hand grabbed his arm.

“Wait,” Shiro said, turning Lance back around.

“What- Mmph!”

Suddenly Lance was being kissed again, pushed against Shiro and the same shelf as nimble fingers beneath their faces buttoned his shirt.

“You were missing a button,” Shiro smirked when he finally pulled away.

“Thank you,” Lance breathed, air knocked out of him. “Ahem, but now I _really_ gotta go. Bye!”

Lance moved to the door and opened it, making sure no one was in the hallway before he walked out and left Shiro alone.

Thankfully, the men’s bathroom was next door, so Lance ran in with two minutes to go and checked his hair and shirt collar. He looked presentable, but his glasses were smudged, so he quickly pulled them off to clean them when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket.

_Meet me again at 5:30? Same place._

_Or we could just meet back at my place at 7_ , Lance messaged back, putting his glasses back on and leaving the bathroom.

As he descended the stairs, his phone buzzed in his hand.

 _Where’s the fun in that?_ Shiro had responded.

Lance rolled his eyes and pocketed his phone, speed walking down the hall with less than a minute left. He made it to class exactly at 4 o’clock, not that his students really minded. They all chatted away while he put down his stuff, paying him no real mind, so he decided to pull out his phone to type out a reply.

_Man, you’re lucky you’re cute. I’ll be there._

“ _¡Hola, clase!_ ” Lance said as he stood up. “Sorry about that. Let’s get started shall we?”

 

\--

 

His watch read 5:35 when he finally made it upstairs. He’d even let class go early so he could put his stuff down in his office before meeting Shiro. But students kept stopping him in the hall, or he had to pee, or whatever the reason, he was a little late. But considering Shiro had almost made him late to his previous class, he knew the man wasn’t able to complain.

“Sorry I’m laaaaaheeyy...! So- So sorry,” Lance said awkwardly as he came upon a very confused janitor in the closet. “Uhhh... So sorry... about this. But I need to... grab a roll of paper towels, if you don’t mind,” he lied, hoping the man would buy it.

“Really?” the janitor said, giving Lance a strange look. “You’re the second person in ten minutes to come asking for some.”

“Oh? Oh! Uh, yeah, there’s a big, big spill downstairs in one of the classrooms,” Lance said.

To the janitor.

“Are you serious? And I was just about to go home.”

The man grumbled as he moved to get the mop bucket so he could go clean the big spill that Lance had totally just made up.

“Uh, wait! You know, it, uh, the spill, was my fault, and I don’t wanna trouble you. So, if you wanna... give me the paper towels, I’ll do it for you, and you can go on home. Easy peasy, right?”

The older man gave Lance another weird look, but he considered, and then accepted Lance’s offer and grabbed a roll from one of the shelves. “Here,” he said, handing it over.

“Thank you, sir!”

“Yeah, yeah...”

Lance let the closet door shut as he carried away his new roll of paper towels that he didn’t actually need.

Great. So if the janitor was in that closet, then where was Shiro? Lance was about to pull out his phone and call the guy, when he heard a low whistling down from the hall. He turned his head and saw Shiro several rooms away, standing against an open door. When they made eye contact, he kicked the doorstop up and stepped inside, letting the door shut behind him in an invitation to Lance. And Lance wasn’t about to pass it up.

Looking around, he made sure no one else was in the large hallway before he jogged over to the door and knocked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just a heads up, there will be nsfw in the next chapter......... a lot of nsfw to be honest. like the whole chapter is literally smut, so
> 
> but yeah, i figured i owed it to you guys for being so patient with me, so be on the lookout for it ;)


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey this chapter is the pure smut y’all deserve with some extra plot thrown in. hope you like it!! ;)

“Knock knock,” Lance lilted for emphasis.

“Who is it?” Shiro asked behind the door, that same teasing sound to his voice.

“It’s the janitor, here to _rrrr_ avish you.”

Shiro opened the door with a twisted up expression, looking his boyfriend up and down in feigned disgust.

“Ew,” he said.

Lance just rolled his eyes and pushed past his boyfriend, handing him the unnecessary roll of paper towels as he walked into the dark and empty classroom and sat down on a table with his legs crossed and chest puffed forward sensually.

“So. As much as I’d love to get fucked bent over one of these tables,” Lance said, straight to the point, “how do we know no one’s gonna walk in and catch us?”

“It’s after 5, most students and professors have gone home. The janitor already came in and cleaned, evidence to the fact that the trashcans are empty and there’s a faint lemony scent to the air. And also I _definitely_ looked up the classroom schedules to make sure there wouldn’t be another class in here after 5. Plus...the door locks from the inside.”

Shiro clicked the lock on the door to emphasize his statement, moving closer to his former teacher who was smirking back at him.

“You’ve done your homework,” Lance said, draping his arms around Shiro’s shoulders as the older man moved into him.

“Well,” Shiro breathed, low and hot in Lance’s ear, “I don’t want to get in trouble, now, do I?”

Shiro’s big hands pressed into Lance’s hips, nibbling on the lobe of his ear as the brunet unbuttoned his shirt so Shiro could mark him up even more.

“Ah, T-Takashi...” Lance moaned as Shiro kissed a sensitive spot on his neck.

“Mm...” Shiro chuckled. “Yes, Professor?”

A shiver ran down Lance’s back at the way Shiro’s voice made him feel. “Ohh, that should not be as hot as it is,” he sighed, scooting closer on the table to give Shiro more access to his body.

“What? Me calling you ‘Professor?’” Shiro growled into Lance’s ear.

“Ah-!”

“I think we may have found a new kink,” he laughed, and Lance pushed on the man’s chest half-heartedly at the accusation.

Shiro’s hands moved down to Lance’s thighs, pulling them open so he could move in between to press his body flush against Lance while their lips moved together. With Lance’s fingers now in his hair, Shiro wound his thick arms around to hold the brunet’s ass and he started to grind their hips together, moaning softly into each other’s mouths.

“Mm, fuck, I need you, Shiro,” Lance mumbled between kisses.

“Yes, sir,” Shiro teased, and pulled off to undo his pants, prompting Lance to do the same.

“Wait,” Lance said before Shiro pulled his pants down any lower. “We don’t have any-“

He cut himself off as Shiro dug in his pocket and pulled out a small bottle of lube and a condom.

“Do I wanna know why you just have those readily available?”

“Maybe I just carry lube and condoms around with me everywhere. Or maybe I ran to my apartment during your class, who knows,” Shiro shrugged.

“...God, you’re so hot.”

Lance pulled Shiro back to him in a bruising kiss, hastily yanking Shiro’s pants down to reveal his hardened cock. He rutted against it, loving the feeling of the thick heat against his clothed thigh.

“Take off those stupid teacher-slacks,” Shiro moaned, having a difficult time pulling Lance’s pants off from his seated position.

“Here.”

Lance pushed Shiro off so he could stand from the table and tug off his pants before leaning his upper body over the table, ass facing a very happy Shiro.

“Thong _and_ a butt plug? All for me? What’s the occasion?” Shiro said, sounding impressed.

“Oh, nothing,” Lance taunted by wiggling his plump ass for Shiro’s pleasure. “I just couldn’t wait to get you in me again.”

“Oooof,” Shiro groaned.

He stepped up to Lance again, grabbing the man’s hips as he grinded his cock over the top of Lance’s ass.

“How long have you had this in?” Shiro asked about the cute little pink plug blocking his entrance into Lance.

“Maybe I put it in before I came here and that’s why I was late,” Lance said, copying his boyfriend’s words from before. “Or maybe...” He swiveled around, Shiro’s face ever so close to his own as he whispered, “I’ve had it in all day.”

“Shit...”

Shiro pulled Lance’s face the few inches to his and smashed their lips together again, waiting until Lance’s hands made it around his neck to release his face and move down to his thighs. He easily lifted the brunet, knees knocking into his sides as he slammed Lance back down onto the table.

“All day... In front of all your students...” Shiro said, moving a hand down to his boyfriend’s plugged hole. “So bad, Professor.”

“Mm-! Y-You gonna stare at it all day or are you gonna wreck me so hard I’ll have to teach sitting down tomorrow?” Lance sighed, growing impatient.

“Who knew a teacher could have such a dirty mouth?”

“Only when I’m super horny and scared of getting caught.”

“Then I guess we should fuck in an empty classroom more often,” Shiro said, slowly pulling out the small plug, making Lance hiss from the loss of pressure.

“Aaah...ooohh, fuck.”

“Here, turn around again. It’ll be easier this way.” Shiro helped Lance down again and then leaned him over, the coolness of the tabletop seeping into Lance’s heated skin. His cheek was pressed against the hard surface, but he was able to look over his shoulder to watch as Shiro slid on the condom and slicked himself up. “I’ll do all the work, you just lay there looking pretty,” Shiro continued as he lined himself up. “Let me give you exactly what you want. You’ll be all uncomfortable in front of your students tomorrow, only able to think of me and what I did to you while you try to teach.”

“Sh-Shiro, please, baby-“

Shiro slid himself in without a struggle, pulling a low moan from each of them.

“Fffuuck...” Lance said, letting his body sink lower into the cool surface as Shiro started fucking him.

The man’s thrusts started out slow, but as the sounds of skin slapping together and harsh breathing filled the air, Shiro pushed in faster, not caring to let their first real moments together in weeks last longer than a few minutes. They had all evening at Lance’s apartment to deal with that.

“Imagine the look on that janitor’s face if he walked in and saw us dirtying up the room he just cleaned,” Lance grunted with a smile.

“Ugh, are you really thinking about him _right now_? I’m starting to think you’d rather have sex with him than me,” Shiro said, almost possessively.

“Oh, no. I _definitely_ want to have sex with you. I’m just thinking... At least we have paper towels to clean up after ourselves,” Lance joked, laugh turning into a choked out and needy moan as Shiro pounded into him.

“I can’t believe as a teacher I actually - Uhn! - found you charming.”

“A-And you still do,” Lance smirked into the table.

Shiro thrusted down hard in response, pressing Lance deeper into the table as both of them let out a loud groan that echoed through the room.

 

\--

 

It became a habit. A few days a week - usually planned, occasionally not - they’d sneak into that same classroom after 5:30, knowing no one was around to hear them, that no straggler could just wander in because of the locked door, that they could enjoy the thrill of _almost_ or _what if_ as Shiro pounded Lance into or over one of the front tables in the near dark.

They tried Lance’s office, but there were always papers all over his desk and it was too small a room for them to do as they pleased. Besides, Lance’s office was right next to Coran’s, and Lance didn’t want to run the risk of moaning _just loud enough_ for him to hear. So that empty classroom became their new haven.

By March, Lance had lost track of how many times they’d had sex in that room in the far corner upstairs. Part of him felt bad for the students that had classes in there, unknowingly sitting there, where one of their teachers had gotten wrecked over and over multiple times a week.

They always disinfected it though! It would be wrong of them to just leave the place the way it was after they’d used it. They just hoped the janitor didn’t notice his supply of disinfectant getting increasingly lower than normal.

 

Before they knew it, spring break was just around the corner, but they wanted to get in one last classroom fuck before being off for a week.

Lance was in his favorite position, folded up on top of the table, head lolling off the edge with Shiro standing over him as he thrusted in and out, his upper body leaning over the table to pepper kisses along Lance’s chest and stomach.

“Ahn- Shiro!”

“Come here,” Shiro said, moving up to cradle Lance’s head in his hands as he pumped up into him, both to capture Lance’s lips with his own and to prevent the brunet from getting a cramped neck. Because he was a gentleman like that.

“UUGGH!” Lance cried at the new position, cock trapped between their stomachs as Shiro hit his prostate over and over. “Shit- Shit- Fuck, Shiro, I’m so close.“

“Agh, me...too.”

“C-Cum inside me.”

“Wait, what?” Shiro said, eyes snapping open at Lance’s fevered request. “Are you sure that’s-“

“Please, you think I wore the black butt plug today for no reason?” Lance laughed. “I wanna... hnng! Feel the warmth of what you did to me inside on the way home later.”

Lance could tell his breathy plea had gotten through to Shiro, who’s only reply was a quiet, “Shit, okay.”

Quickly, Shiro pulled out and yanked the condom off, setting it on the table next to the long-forgotten plug and Lance’s glasses that had come off sometime since they’d started. Just like that, he was inside Lance again, fucking into him without stopping, pulling Lance’s head up to kiss him as the brunet moaned beneath him. A few more thrusts with Lance’s gentle moans in his ear and Shiro was seeing stars, cum pouring inside his ex-professor’s hole as he jerkily came, gasping Lance’s name on his tongue.

“Shiro! Oh, please don’t stop- Don’t stop- Don’t- Aahh!” Lance screamed as Shiro pounded just exactly right, their stomachs squeezing his cock so tight as cum splattered between them, glueing them together in the dark room. “Sh-Shirooo!”

“Fuck,” Shiro panted, smiling down at his boyfriend post-orgasm. “Lance, I lo-“

“What the _hell_ is going on in here?”

They were suddenly flooded with light streaming in from the open door of the classroom, the silhouette of Lance’s boss Coran staring straight at the two of them joined together, cum dripping everywhere.

They were caught.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shiro, a little bit later: “at least we got to come?”  
> lance: “shut....the _fuck_ up.”
> 
>  
> 
> y’all in the comments on the last chapter: i hope they don’t get caught!
> 
> me, having planned this since october: yeah you would hope that ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> :)

Shiro knew Lance felt uncomfortable. Not only was there a buttplug shoved hastily up his ass, but he also looked like a sexed-out fiend with his hair and clothes in disarray as the two of them stood there, completely terrified, in Coran’s office.

“Sir-“ Lance started before he was cut off.

“Nope, I don’t want to hear it. Not yet. First I’m gonna speak, and then it’ll be your turn.”

The ginger wasn’t typically a scary man, but when he got mad, he had his terrifying moments. Especially since he held Lance’s job in his hands.

The two men on the other side of the desk merely nodded at his statement, and he continued.

“For one, I have to say I am very, very disappointed in you, Lance. Never in my 20 years as dean have I ever had a circumstance quite like this. ...Also I don’t think I’ll get _that_ image out of my head any time soon.”

Coran had caught them in an empty classroom, orgasm fresh on their faces as Shiro literally stood over and inside Lance, who had been folded up on top of a table. “My office. Now,” was the only thing he had said before walking out and leaving them to pull themselves together. They’d cleaned as best as they could with what they had, Shiro replugged Lance (because where else would they put it?), and the three marched down to Coran’s office. Thankfully, the building was deserted, so there was no risk of anyone else finding out. Except for the fact that the worst person that could find out, other than maybe the school’s president, had been the person that had caught them, so nothing really mattered anymore besides trying to save Lance’s ass. Both literally and figuratively.

“Two,” Coran continued, “you defiled a classroom. During school hours. The janitor was about to leave when told me he heard moaning upstairs. So now, he’s staying late to disinfect the room, again, as we speak.”

“Yeah, that was...”

“We would have disinfected it ourselves. Like, he could go home.”

“We weren’t thinking with our brains.”

“And thirdly,” Coran said, cutting off their apologetic ramblings, “you must know there will be some sort of punishment for this kind of behavior.”

“I know, sir,” said Lance.

“Teacher-student relationships are not permitted at this institution. I thought I had made that very clear when I hired you.”

“You did. I- I’m sorry, sir.”

“I’m just not sure what I can-“

“Punish me, instead,” Shiro blurted out.

“...’Instead?’” Coran asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Er, _only_. You should only punish me, sir. It was my fault, not Lance- uh, Professor McClain’s.”

“Son,” Coran said, looking heartbroken as if he didn’t want to actually continue his statement. “Is Professor McClain forcing you to say this?”

“What?” Shiro asked, repulsed by the very thought. “No!”

“This is a safe place, you can be honest.”

“I am!”

“Did he force you into doing anything you didn’t want to do?”

“Definitely not. If anything, _I_ forced _him_. He tried to keep his distance, tried to push me away and make me leave him alone, but I kept chasing after him,” Shiro said. He glanced over to Lance, whose face was crestfallen and looked to be on the verge of tears as he stared down at the floor. “Why is he the only one being put on trial? It’s not his fault.”

“It’s sort of my fault, Shiro,” Lance said softly.

“But it’s just as much mine, too. Why aren’t my intentions being questioned?” 

“You mustn’t misunderstand me,” Coran said. “I am not trying to be malicious. Sometimes victims of these kinds of relationships shift blame onto themselves out of fear or preservation for their abuser. And, as much as it pains me to accuse you, Lance, I need to make sure that Shiro isn’t being taken advantage of.”

“I understand,” Lance said solemnly.

”Well, I don’t!” Shiro yelled. He slammed his hands down onto Coran’s desk, desperately trying to make the man understand that it was his fault and his alone. “There’s nothing wrong here! Look, I’m not some random teenager, I’m older than him! And he’s not even my teacher anymore!”

“Shiro, please,” Lance said when his boyfriend got a bit too loud. They both knew yelling at Lance’s boss wasn’t the way to win this.

“I’m sorry. I know, I’m sorry. I just- We- He’s not taking advantage of me,” Shiro said with a new calmness. “I mean, you saw it, I was the one doing the pounding; I doubt if he was taking advantage he’d let me-“

“Mister Shirogane-”

“Right, again, sorry. But anyway! This- This!” Shiro emphasized, moving a finger between him and a red-faced Lance. “This is equal! I’m not being taken advantage of or made to do anything I don’t want to do. Trust me, I want everything to do with Professor McClain, because I- I...“ Shiro wasn’t sure what came over him that possessed him to say what he said next, but nothing had ever felt more right. “I love him.”

Shiro let out a shaky breath at his declaration. They hadn’t even been dating for that long, so maybe Lance would think he was crazy for being in love so soon. But, if Shiro was honest, he’d fallen in love that very first day, and those feelings only grew stronger once Lance finally accepted him.

The world seemed to stand still for what felt like an eternity. Lance’s eyes grew wide and rose to meet Shiro’s, raking over his face to check for any wavering doubts or falsities. But there were none.

“Y-You love me?” Lance asked, the situation at hand momentarily put on hold.

“Yeah, of course. Of course I do,” Shiro confirmed with a small smile. 

“I love you, too.”

Shiro couldn’t explain the joy he felt hearing Lance return his feelings. He smiled, forgetting any grievances surrounding them as he took Lance’s hand and held it, the small squeeze Lance gave making his heart flutter.

“I hate to interrupt the moment,” Coran cut in, “but I’m afraid despite being in love, this still can’t be merely swept under the rug.”

“Look, we know it’s not exactly morally right because of our situations,” said Shiro, “but even if we’d been together before either of us came here-“

“But you weren’t.”

“Right! But still, that doesn’t change the fact that I’m not a fresh-out-of-high-school teenager. I’m still older than him. There’s gotta be a little bit of lax there.”

“I understand where you’re coming from, but if I give Professor McClain lax, then I have to give everyone that comes through my office lax,” Coran sighed. He slumped in his chair and put a tired hand to his forehead. “Listen. I like you Lance. You're like the son I never had.”

“Don’t you have three sons?” Lance asked.

“Yes,” Coran said. “But, as much as I do care about you, I can't just let you off without repercussions.”

“I know. If you're going to fire me, I totally understand.”

"I don't want to fire you, Lance! That’s my problem, here. You’re one of the best teachers I’ve ever had under me,” Coran said.

“Thank you, sir,” Lance said. “And I wish I could say that I’d choose my job over Shiro, but, if I’m honest, I don’t think I can. He says it’s all his fault, but it’s not. I fell for him, I chose to be with him, and I accepted his proposals to have sex in that classroom.”

“Proposal _s_?” Coran asked the two, who realized at the same time that admitting to having sex in the building during school hours _multiple times_ probably wouldn’t help their case.

“Uhh. Pr-Proposal,” Lance lied.

“Singular.”

“Just happened the one time.”

“Totally,” Shiro nodded for emphasis.

“Anyway,” Lance continued. “It’s like we said. We love each other, and I can’t give up our relationship to keep my job. I won’t.”

“Lance-“ Shiro tried, but then his boyfriend gave him a look. A look that said his mind was made up, and Shiro knew better than to argue against his decision.

“I’m a first-year teacher and I broke the rules. I deserve punishment for my irresponsible actions.” He turned back to Coran. “So go ahead and fire me.”

“If you’re sure...” the ginger said as more of a question.

“It’s what I deserve.”

“Alright.”

Coran shuffled around some papers and pulled out a pen to write up Lance’s verdict, while the two men on the other side of the desk braced for impact.

“Professor McClain,” Coran started again, writing on his legal pad. “You are hereby sentenced to an unpaid leave of absence for the next two weeks following spring break. You will not be able to work, or come to campus at all unless otherwise specified by me until the first week of April.”

“Wait, you mean-“

“We will find another teacher or substitute to teach your classes while you are gone, just make sure a detailed class schedule of the next few weeks is up on the academic website.”

“So, you’re not gonna fire me?” Lance asked, and Shiro could hear the joy bubbling in his voice no matter how hard he tried to hold it back.

“It does not appear that way, no.” The smallest quirk of the lip flashed on Coran’s face as he continued to write out the two’s punishment. “And Mr. Shirogane.”

“Yes, sir?”

“You will be put on probation for the remainder of the semester, which will prohibit you from attending any school-held events, including any and all of those... fraternity parties.”

“Fair enough,” Shiro nodded. He suddenly felt glad he hadn’t joined any sports teams, though he knew his frat brothers wouldn’t be too happy about his lack of attendance. “Uh, will this probation go on my record?”

“It shouldn’t, and, as long as you keep your grades up, you will be able to continue as a normal student again starting next semester.”

“Thank you, so much, sir-“

“Don’t thank me yet, Shirogane,” Coran interrupted. “Know this: If I see you two together on campus while Shiro is still attending classes here, no matter the reason, I will have no choice but to remove you both from this institution forever. I do hope you realize how gracious I’m being. Don’t make me regret it.”

“We do, sir. A-And we won’t, sir. Um, thank you, sir,” Lance rambled.

Coran raised a hand and nodded to put Lance at ease, breaking his disciplinary persona to give the pair a small smile. “Have a good spring break, both of you. And I’ll see you in a few weeks, Lance.”

“I- Yessir.”

“Now, get out of my office, you two.”

As soon as the words left the man’s lips, Shiro pulled Lance to and out the door of Coran’s office, breaking into a run once they reached the hallway. They ran hand-in-hand all the way to Lance’s car, only letting go to hop in on either side.

“I can’t believe that happened,” Lance said as he closed his door.

“I can’t believe we got away with it,” Shiro said, which made Lance shoot him a serious look.

“We didn’t.” 

“Right. Sorry, I just meant-”

“Honestly, we’re just lucky we didn’t get in more trouble.” Lance fumbled trying to pull his keys out of his pocket, finally turning on the car when he found the right one. “I’m still terrified he’s going to send me an email later saying that he’s changed his mind and he actually _is_ going to fire me for what I’ve done. I can’t believe we did that. Why did we do that? That’s so unprofessional. Why didn’t he fire me? He should have fired me. He’s going to fire me, he just wanted to soften the blow, that’s it.”

“Hey,” Shiro said, swiping his fingers through Lance’s bangs to pull him from his thoughts. “That’s not gonna happen. You heard him, you’re only going to miss two weeks. We got off easy. He probably should have gotten rid of the both of us, but he didn’t. So, from now on, we play by the rules and we don’t make anything worse.”

“Yes. You’re right. You’re absolutely right,” Lance said, nodding in agreement as he strapped himself in. “We should have done that in the first place, but now we’ve learned our lesson. You’ll be on probation and I’ll miss two weeks of teaching. ...Which means I’m basically going to miss an entire paycheck, which might set me back on the rent a little, but my landlord is fairly lenient so maybe he’ll understand...”

“Lance.”

“Although, I still need to buy groceries, and gas, and then there’s the Netflix payment coming up soon-”

“ _Lance_.”

“But you know what?” the brunet finally snapped out of it. He looked over to Shiro and held the man’s face in his hands. “It’s a small price to pay.”

“It is,” Shiro smiled in return.

“We got off easy.”

“Too easy.”

“We’re still together.”

“We are.”

“And…” Lance continued. “You love me.”

“That I do.” Shiro pulled Lance’s hands down into his own, kissing each of them gently before squeezing them together. “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too.”

Lance leaned over and gave Shiro a quick peck on the lips, which Shiro happily leaned into.

“And hey,” Shiro said, “if you need help on your rent and stuff, I could probably-”

“What if you moved in?” Lance blurted.

His eyes grew wide as he realized what he’d just said, slightly embarrassed at proposing the idea so suddenly.

“I mean, y-you don’t have to. I know you might want to finish out the year in your own apartment. And it’s probably too soon in the relationship to talk about moving in, and all that. But if you wanted to, eventually, er, i-if that would be something you’re interested in…”

“I’m very interested,” Shiro said.

“You are?”

“Yeah. In fact, why don’t we go over to your apartment now and we can talk about getting me moved in... over break? If that works for you, of course. It’s the perfect time: I’ll be off school, and you’ll be off the next three weeks…”

“Ugh, thanks for rubbing it in,” Lance said, rolling his eyes playfully. “Um, but if you’re sure?”

“Yes. One hundred percent, yes. I can’t think of anything I want more than to come home to you every day after school.”

Shiro moved his hand across Lance’s cheek, pulling his face closer as his gaze took in every one of his boyfriend’s features.

“You know, you kind of already do that,” Lance teased, closing his eyes.

“Yeah, but now it’ll be official.”

“I love you.”

“I love _you_.”

Shiro leaned in the small distance and connected their lips, pushing into Lance, only to get pushed back as the younger man kissed him enthusiastically in return. He was so happy. Not only was he dating the man of his dreams, one he never even imagined he was capable of getting, but they were in love. They were going to live together, take on the next few weeks and the rest of Shiro’s college career together, and Shiro would make it his goal that Lance never felt unhappy while they were together again.

Lance moaned quietly as Shiro’s hands moved through his hair, maneuvering the professor’s head to the angle he wanted for better access. He started to lift off, aiming to kiss down the brunet’s jaw, but got stopped short when a small knock came from the front of the car. Both men froze and looked out the windshield to see Coran standing there, having paused on the way to his own car to give them a questioning look.

 _Sorry,_ Shiro mouthed, raising his arms up and off of Lance in an act of surrender.

“Why don’t we get out of here?” Lance asked, waving sheepishly at Coran as the man walked away.

“Yeah,” Shiro said, taking Lance’s hand in his own. “Let’s go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey what's up y'all!! thank you so much for coming along with me on this journey. i've loved writing this fic and i've loved seeing your reactions to it!! thank you so much to everyone who's been following since day one, and to all the new readers as well! i've got one more little chapter for you after this one, and then it'll be over!! i hope you've enjoyed so far, and i hope you like my little ending as well. <3
> 
>  
> 
> also, an edited part of the chapter that i felt was too funny not to share:
> 
> "You’re one of the best teachers I’ve ever had under me,” Coran said.  
> "Heh. Same," Shiro said, which earned him a slap on the arm from Lance.


	14. Chapter 14

~~Three years later~~

 

Lance yawned as he sat at his desk, his last day of finals for the year only halfway over as his students scrawled away in their seats. He checked his watch, 12:45 PM; Shiro’s last final would be nearly over too. The ungraded tests from his previous class sat on his desk, but he couldn’t bring himself to do them. So, he pulled out his phone, playing some mindless game to keep him awake for the next hour until lunch.

Before long, Lance’s eyes started to droop, having stayed up far too late the night before to help Shiro study for his last big final before he graduates. Only three more days until graduation, and Lance would be able to breathe again. Shiro wouldn’t be a student, and maybe Coran would even let Shiro visit him at school in the coming years… Okay, maybe not, but at least Lance wouldn’t feel like a teenager again, having to hide his relationship from his parents and the rest of the world.

Slowly, the brunet’s eyes fell closed while staring at his phone, hearing a few giggles in the back of his mind – probably his students making fun of him for nodding off...

_BAM!_

The phone clattered to the floor as Lance jolted awake, startled and confused as he saw Shiro walking into the classroom with a big smirk on his face.

“Uh, Sh- _Mr. Shirogane_ ,” Lance said, standing up from his desk. “What are you doing he- MMPH!”

Shiro’s hands held Lance’s face as the older man kissed him, lips clumsily smashed against his while the classroom went completely silent. Shiro pulled off with quiet _smeck_ , smiling happily at Lance who felt mortified. And from the way Shiro’s eyebrows furrowed together, he must have looked mortified, too.

“Shiro,” Lance whispered, faces still mere inches apart, “I’m giving a final…”

The man’s eyebrows flicked up, surprise written on his face as he looked up to the classroom full of freshman. He laughed awkwardly, raising a hand to wave over at the teenagers staring up at the two of them with curious faces.

“Ahem, sorry about that, class,” Shiro said, doing absolutely nothing to assuage the quiet tension in the room.

“Class, please continue your tests, and _can I talk to you for a second?_ ” Lance gritted out, pulling Shiro to the corner of the room. “What the hell?” he yelled under his breath.

“I finished my test,” Shiro whispered.

“Okay, but-”

“No, listen. I finished my test. My last test. Ever.”

Lance was still confused, but he remained silent, waving a hand for Shiro to continue explaining himself.

“Remember what Coran said? ‘While Shiro is still attending classes here...’ Guess what? I’m not attending classes here anymore. I’m done,” he said matter-of-factly.

“You still have to graduate on Saturday,” Lance retorted, fixing the glasses that had slipped down his nose when Shiro kissed him.

“Right, but they’ll send me my diploma whether I show up or not, because guess what? I completed my four years, Lance. I’m no longer a student.”

Lance couldn’t argue with that. Shiro technically _wasn’t_ a student anymore, so _technically_ their relationship didn’t have to be hidden any longer. The brunet took in a long breath, feeling a bit relieved after the explanation. Well, kind of.

“So what happens when my students start talking and word gets around that I kissed a student in class on the last day of school?”

“Not a student.”

“Shiro-”

“He- hey,” Shiro said aloud, turning around to address the students taking their tests. “He’ll curve everyone’s grades to make sure you all pass if none of you talk about what just happened.”

The class erupted into bemused excitement, some staring in disbelief, some looking a little relieved, and a few nodding their heads in agreement.

“That’s not-” Lance started.

“You have to do it now, they’ll keep their word,” Shiro smiled.

“I’m so sure,” the professor crossed his arms.

Shiro moved in and kissed Lance again, winking as he started to walk out, but stopped short at a familiar face looking in from the hallway.

“YEAH!! WHOO! I _SO_ CALLED IT, BRO!” Chad said, continuing to whoop all the way down the mostly empty hallway.

Lance sighed and grabbed Shiro’s arm to pull him back. “If I finally get fired, it’s your fault,” he whispered, smiling slightly despite squeezing his boyfriend’s arm in his hand.

“Not a student,” Shiro reminded.

He pulled Lance’s hand away and gave it a quick peck before hurrying out the door and down the hallway after Chad.

Silence fell over the room as Lance shut the door behind Shiro, praying to himself that his career wasn’t about to end. As he turned around, he noticed several pairs of eyes staring at him.

“I-”

His students would want an explanation. _And_ that grading curve Shiro promised, even though Lance was pretty sure he couldn’t actually do that. Bribery definitely wasn’t the way to go about these things. But... it might get him off the hook.

He was about to try and beg for their silence, when a voice from the back spoke up.

“Who was that guy?” the girl said.

“Wait, what?” Lance asked. “You don’t know who he is?”

The girl shook her head ‘no’ and Lance looked around the room at curious faces.

“Do any of you know that guy? Have you ever seen him before, at all?”

“No…” a few students said, all of them looking around at each other and shaking their heads.

It appeared that none of these freshman had ever seen Shiro before, which wasn’t exactly surprising since the man never hung around campus after his first year except to go to class, and most people don’t just forget a guy with a silver prosthetic arm and a big scar across his nose. Which meant that maybe, there was no reason to worry after all.

“So, who was he?” a male student asked again.

“Well,” Lance said, releasing a breath that he’d been holding for four years. “That was my boyfriend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't worry, lance stays teaching there for like 50 years, shiro proposed right after graduation, they get an actual house together, maybe have a kid that lance brings to work at least one day a semester to show her off to his classes. it's a happy ending, and yes, lance's parents do come to their wedding.
> 
> i hope you've enjoyed this fic as much as i've enjoyed writing it!!! i love this story, i love these boys, and i'm glad you all did too!!! (and i'm glad you enjoyed chad so much, i just had to include him in the last chapter lol)
> 
> thanks again for coming on this journey with me y'all!!! <3

**Author's Note:**

> If you like this fic, please leave a comment letting me know and maybe consider buying me a [coffee!](http://ko-fi.com/natdashg) Thank you so much! <3


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